Depression - epidemiology and treatment

Abstract

Introduction. Depression is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Approximately 280 million people in the world have depression (Global Health Data Exchange). According to Our World in Data, in the Republic of Moldova in 2017, depression affected 153 thousand people, of which 36% were men and 64% women. Depression is the result of complex interactions between social, psychological and biological factors. People who have gone through adverse life events are more likely to develop depression. Recovery requires great efforts, a multidisciplinary and holistic approach. Treatment options for managing depression can generally be divided into antidepressants, electroconvulsive therapy, and psychosocial interventions. Aim of study. The purpose of the research is to identify the socio-determining factors in the appearance of the depressive syndrome, to study the epidemiology, the principles of prophylaxis and treatment. Methods and materials. A survey was conducted through 15 questionnaire questions about the influence of various socio-demographic factors on depression. The questionnaire has an important data about age, gender, living environment, level of education, marital status, social and professional status. The survey was conducted on a sample of 50 people from the territory of the Republic of Moldova. Results. Based on an opinion poll conducted on a group of 50 people from Republic of Moldova, aged 18- 35 years, it was found that 23 of them (46%) suffered at least once in their lifetime from depression, 60.86% of them being aged from 18-25 years, with the predominance of the urban environment (64%). Of these 23 people, 11 are married, that represents 48%. The highest number is registered among students 48.82% (from these 23 positive answers), or 11 students out of 19 who participated in the survey. Regarding the way they overcame the episode of depression, 91.31% of affected persons passed over him with help of music, sport, travel, and only 8.69% turned to specialized help. Conclusion. Depression is a common illness worldwide, with an estimated 3.8% of the population affected, but the results show that the real number far exceeds the estimated. According to the results of the survey, most of those who have suffered from depression live in urban areas and are between 18-25 years old. A fairly high prevalence is registered among married people, which confirms the involvement of environmental factors in the etiology of depression, and if we refer to social and professional status, the highest prevalence is among students and people with higher education. Thus, we can confidently say that depression has a complex etiology and the main measure of prophylaxis is to detect and remove the triggers.