Feeling blue? It could be mental disorder

dubai — Mental disorders, especially depression, are among the leading causes of disability in the UAE with a sharp rise in the burden of depressive disorders from age group 10-14 to the 15-19 age group, according to data from the Global Burden of Disease data.

Raghid Charara, a postdoctoral researcher at the American University of Beirut Medical Centre and lead author of the study, told

Khaleej Times that in 2015, mental disorder YLD (Years Lived with Disability) constituted 18.5 per cent of total YLDs for the UAE, making them the leading cause of disability in the country.

“YLDs are basically a measure of what is ailing a population. In comparison, globally, 15.7 per cent of total YLDs were due to mental disorders,” he said.

Depressive disorders are the largest contributors to mental disorder YLDs, followed by anxiety disorders. “There is a sharp rise in the burden of depressive disorders from age 10-14 to the 15-19 age group. It remains very high for other age groups,” he said.

The new study shows that the Eastern Mediterranean Region is witnessing an increase in chronic disorders, including mental illness.

Charara said that women have a higher burden of mental disorders in the UAE compared to men. “What drives this trend is perhaps the higher burden of anxiety disorders in women compared to men. The burden of mental illness is higher in females in all age groups, except for those under 15 years of age (where conduct disorder, more common in males, predominates),” he explained.

The common disorders include schizophrenia, depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, anxiety, eating disorders, autistic spectrum, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder and intellectual disability.

Globally, mental illness accounts for 17.4 per cent of total YLDs. In 2013, depression accounted for 44.6 per cent of total disease burden from mental illness in the eastern Mediterranean Region, which consists of nations in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The second-greatest cause of total disease burden from mental illness is anxiety. The rate of both of these disorders spikes during adolescence.

“Mental health disorders are taking an alarming toll on people in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Women – often in the prime of their lives – are losing years of good health to depression, anxiety, and other mental disorders,” said Charara.

“This is unacceptable and must be addressed by governments, public health experts, and citizens in the region.” The current study supports previous findings that have identified a strong link between ongoing war and unrest and citizens of eastern Mediterranean countries developing mental illness.

Women suffer a higher mental health burden across the region. Women lost 3.3 million total Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY can be thought of as one lost year of healthy life) to depression, compared to men’s nearly 2 million DALYs, in 2013.

Anxiety exhibits a similar gender divide. Women in the region lost more than 1.4 million DALYs due to anxiety, while men lost nearly half that number, almost 800,000 DALYs.

The study underscores that stigma compounds challenges of mental illness in the region. Stigma may cause people suffering with these disorders to remain quiet, leading to under reported cases across all income levels.

In addition, recent data show that resources allocated to the screening and treatment of mental health services are insufficient to meet the region’s needs.

“The world is changing and the region needs to change with it,” said Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) Director for Middle Eastern Initiatives, Dr Ali Mokdad.

This study is based on findings from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) coordinated by IHME at the University of Washington in Seattle. With more than 2,000 collaborators in over 125 countries, GBD is the largest and most comprehensive effort measuring epidemiological levels and trends worldwide.

“With conflicts in many countries in the region, the challenge of mental health for children and adults is likely to increase. We need to equip our health systems to tackle this head-on. That means ramping up treatment options for people with mental health disorders and boosting prevention efforts that will encourage people to seek help.”

The challenge of mental health is likely to increase. We need to equip our health systems to tackle this head-on. That means ramping up treatment options for people with mental health disorders and boosting prevention efforts that will encourage people to seek help.” Dr Ali Mokdad. IHME Director for Middle Eastern Initiatives