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The prevalence of mental health problems in sub-Saharan adolescents: A systematic review.

Authors :
Astrid Jörns-Presentati
Ann-Kathrin Napp
Anja S Dessauvagie
Dan J Stein
Deborah Jonker
Elsie Breet
Weslin Charles
Renier L Swart
Mari Lahti
Sharain Suliman
Ronelle Jansen
Leigh L van den Heuvel
Soraya Seedat
Gunter Groen
Source :
PLoS ONE, Vol 16, Iss 5, p e0251689 (2021)
Publication Year :
2021
Publisher :
Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2021.

Abstract

Background and purposeMost research regarding child and adolescent mental health prevention and promotion in low-and middle-income countries is undertaken in high-income countries. This systematic review set out to synthesise findings from epidemiological studies, published between 2008 and 2020, documenting the prevalence of mental health problems in adolescents from across sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsA systematic search of multiple databases (MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus) and Google Scholar was conducted guided by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Reviewer's manual for systematic reviews of observational epidemiological studies. Studies included reported prevalence outcomes for adolescents aged 10-19 using either clinical interviews or standardized questionnaires to assess psychopathology. Clinical samples were excluded.ResultsThe search yielded 1 549 records of which 316 studies were assessed for eligibility and 51 met the inclusion criteria. We present a qualitative synthesis of 37 of these 51 included articles. The other 14 studies reporting prevalence rates for adolescents living with HIV are published elsewhere. The prevalence of depression, anxiety disorders, emotional and behavioural difficulties, posttraumatic stress and suicidal behaviour in the general adolescent population and selected at-risk groups in 16 sub-Saharan countries (with a total population of 97 616 adolescents) are reported.

Subjects

Subjects :
Medicine
Science

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
19326203
Volume :
16
Issue :
5
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
PLoS ONE
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.34869a5fd206480282028cbd7c96d027
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0251689