وضعیت سلامت روانی و عوامل مرتبط موثر بر زنان محروم ایرانی

Purpose The prevalence of mental disorders in Iran approximates to that of other countries. This study evaluates mental health status and its related factors among underprivileged women in Shiraz, Iran. Methods This research was conducted between June, 2010 and November, 2012, and comprised 2108 women who participated in the Shiraz Women's Health Cohort Study. The questionnaire used in the study was completed by trained general practitioner and included demographic information and the 28-item version of the General Health. The t-test, chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression model were used for statistical analysis. A P-value <0.05 was considered significant. Results The mean age of the participants was 49.7 ± 10.6 years. According to the General Health Questionnaire, the most prevalent mental disorder was social dysfunction observed in 1643 (77.9%) participants followed by somatic symptoms found in 1308 (62%) subjects. Mental disorders were most prevalent among married women (63.8%, P = 0.004). Participants holding high school diploma or university degree (141; 52.4%) comprised the smallest proportion of subjects with mental disorders (P = 0.01). Of a total 265 participants whose husband were in prison, 171 (64.5%) exhibited mental disorders, presenting the greatest proportion of women with mental disorders. Logistic regression analysis showed an association between mental health status and participants’ level of education, number of children and marital status, based on the General Health Questionnaire total score. Conclusions The results of this study showed a considerably higher prevalence of mental disorders among Iranian women in comparison with the general population. Therefore policymakers should pay greater attention to the mental health status of underprivileged Iranian women.

Mental disorders have been found to adversely impact the mental health more than any other chronic diseases, including diabetes, and hypertension (Lubetkin et al., 2003). These disorders affect communities by undermining social and occupational relationships as well as fulfilling the need for physical, emotional and financial support (Ahmadvand et al., 2012). According to a World Health Organization (WHO) report, psychiatric disorders would be the most common causes of disability and premature death over the next three decades (Noorbala et al., 2012). Recently, WHO has performed a study in seventeen countries from Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East and clearly documented that mental disorders are common occurrences (Kessler et al., 2007). In Iran, the prevalence of mental disorders increased from 11% in 1963 (Noorbala, 2004) to 21.5% in 1998 (Noorbala et al., 2012), 23.8% in 2000 (Noorbala, 2004) and 34.2% in 2007 (Ahmadvand et al., 2012). A review article of mental disorders has shown that the prevalence of these disorders in Iran is not less than other countries (Ahmadvand et al., 2012). The incidence of mental disorders varies according to the target population and geographic regions (Ahmadvand et al., 2012, Noorbala et al., 2012, Noorbala, 2004, Padyab et al., 2012 and Naderi et al., 2012). Also, studies have proved that women from low socio-economic class are at higher risk of developing for mental disorders (Noorbala et al., 2012). Since we found no study in Iran that specifically focused on mental health status of women from low socio-economic background, this study was designed to evaluate both the mental health status and its associated factors among underprivileged women in Shiraz, Iran.