Researchers from University of Alabama at Birmingham Provide Details of New Studies and Findings in the Area of Depression [The Association between Social Determinants of Health and Depressive Disorders: A 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor …]: Mental Health Diseases and Conditions – Depression

2023 JUL 10 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- New research on depression is the subject of a new report. According to news reporting originating from Birmingham, Alabama, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Major Depressive Disorder is a leading cause of disability worldwide and one of the most common disorders in the United States. Contributors to an individual’s risk for experiencing depressive disorders include individual and social factors.”

The news correspondents obtained a quote from the research from University of Alabama at Birmingham: “Although the social determinants of health (SDOH) are conditions that contribute to healthy functioning, health outcomes, and quality of life, it is unclear to what extent adverse SDOH experiences are associated with self-reporting depressive disorder (DD). Data from the 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a population-based telephone survey of noninstitutionalized U.S. adults, was employed in this study. Lifetime diagnosis of DD was self-reported among survey participants who also completed the Social Determinants of Health optional module within 17 participating BRFSS states and entities. Rao-Scott chi-square analysis was used to determine the association of individual and SDOH measures with DD. The prevalence of DD among participating states was 19.85%. Among respondents, significant proportional differences were observed for each SDOH indicator regarding DD status. However, significant differences in health insurance coverage were not observed.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “Survey respondents with a lifetime diagnosis of DD experienced adverse SDOH conditions in greater proportion than individuals not reporting DD. Individual and community-based approaches to address the contextual influences of depressive disorders should be aggressively implemented.”

For more information on this research see: The Association between Social Determinants of Health and Depressive Disorders: A 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Analysis. Psychiatry International, 2023,4(17):147-159. The publisher for Psychiatry International is MDPI AG.

A free version of this journal article is available at https://doi.org/10.3390/psychiatryint4020017.

Our news editors report that more information may be obtained by contacting Larrell L. Wilkinson, Department of Human Studies, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, United States. Additional authors for this research include Alexis Long-Daniels, Mary Appah, Yusen Zhai, Dayna M. Watson, Kiera Walker, Kourtney Young-Bilbo, Anita Aboagye, Chelsea Tucker, Shannon McCarthy.

(Our reports deliver fact-based news of research and discoveries from around the world.)