Prevalence of depressive symptoms among university students in Oman

ABSTRACT

To study the prevalence of depressive symptoms and its association with gender, academic year, and college among university students in Oman. A cross-sectional study was conducted among Omani students attending the students' clinic of the Sultan Qaboos University [SQU]. A systematic sampling of students, males and females, from different colleges, who visited the clinic during the study period, was carried out. The self-administered Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9] was used to screen for propensity to depression. A total of 481 students participated in the study [243 males and 238 females]. Overall, 133 [27.7%] of the participants [66 males and 67 females] had depression of various grades based on the PHQ-9 diagnostic criteria using a cut point of more than 11. Depression score at the cut point of 11 was not statistically associated with gender, college and the academic year. Tendency for depression might be a common health problem among college students in Oman attending primary health care facilities. Further research on socio-demographic characteristics and the effect of depression on the academic performance is needed