Priya Bansal

Depression and anxiety among middle-aged women: A community-based study

Background: Anxiety and depressive disorders constitute a substantial proportion of the global burden of disease and are projected to form the second most common cause of disability by 2020. Objective: To assess the level of depression and anxiety among middle age women and the possible factors behind it. Materials and Methods: A total of 180 women aged 40–60 years were selected by proportionate sampling technique. Age, education, marital status, socioeconomic status, age at marriage, age at menopause, weight and height were noted. Zung-self-rating scales were used for calculating levels of depression and anxiety in these women. The data were analyzed by using statistical software SPSS. Results: The level of syndromal depression and anxiety was found to be 86.7% and 88.9%, respectively. Most of the subjects had the moderate type of depression (49.5%) followed by mild (29.4%) and severe depression (7.8%). While in case of anxiety, most of the subjects (69.4%) had a mild form of anxiety and 17.8% had moderate anxiety level. A significant difference was observed in the level of depression with respect to marital status (P = 0.009) and in the level of anxiety with respect to age (P = 0.021) in the study subjects. On applying logistic regression, none of the factors studied were found to be significant variables for anxiety or depression in the study population. Conclusion: Depression and anxiety are prevalent among the middle-aged women in rural Punjab. Provision of mental health services in this group is essential.

An epidemiological study of overweight and obesity among women in an Urban area of North India

Background: Obesity is a complex, multi-factorial chronic disease. Overweight and obesity are the fifth leading risk for global deaths. Objectives: To find the prevalence and risk factors for obesity in women aged 20-60 years in Ludhiana city. Methods: The present study is a community based cross sectional study carried out in an urban area of Ludhiana among women aged 20-60 years. Among the study population of 324 women, a pre-designed and pre-tested questionnaire was used to record the socio-demographic and anthropometric profile of women. Chi square test and logistic regression was used to find the association of obesity and hypertension with socio-demographic variables. Results: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 12.7% and 29.6% respectively. Obesity was found to be more common among middle-aged Punjabi housewives belonging to upper socio-economic strata. There was strong association between overweight/obesity and hypertension.

Impact of Health Education on The Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Teachers Regarding Reproductive Health of Adolescents of Amritsar, Punjab.

CONTEXT Teachers play an important role in guiding the adolescents. Adolescents are ill equipped to deal with the impending changes in their body which makes them vulnerable to STDs, HIV/AIDS and premarital sex. This study attempts to study the impact of reproductive health education on the knowledge, attitude and practices of teachers, about which only a few studies are available. AIMS To study the impact of health education on the knowledge, attitude and practices of teachers regarding reproductive health of adolescents. SETTINGS Senior Secondary schools of Amritsar and Department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Amritsar, Punjab, India. STUDY PARTICIPANTS Male teachers of senior secondary schools of Amritsar teaching class 9th-12th. STUDY DESIGN Educational intervention study. SAMPLING METHOD Purposive sampling. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study was started with 155 teachers (teaching class 9th -12th) who willingly participated from 50 senior secondary schools of Amritsar district. It was carried out in three phases. In first phase, after taking informed consent, the teachers filled a pretested questionnaire which was followed by an interactive session on reproductive health in second phase. In third phase, to study the impact of the interactive session and the sustainability of knowledge gained, they were again administered the same questionnaire after a period of 3 months. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Microsoft Excel, SPSS, Chi-square test. RESULTS Maximum 74 (47.7%) teachers were aware of the psychosocial problems of adolescents. Majority 110 (71%) of the teachers had only partial knowledge about pubertal changes. 117 (75.5%) teachers were unaware about genital hygiene. Only 33 (21.3%) teachers had adequate knowledge about different STDs. 91 (58.7%) and 54 (34.8%) of teachers had adequate knowledge about routes of transmission and prevention of AIDS respectively. Only 37 (23.9%) teachers were imparting sex education to students. After intervention significant favorable changes were seen in their knowledge, attitude and practices regarding most of above mentioned topics. CONCLUSION Although the baseline knowledge of teachers in most aspects of reproductive health of adolescents was found to be low, significant favourable changes were observed after health education.

Comprehensive Evaluation of Drug De-addiction Centres (DDCs) in Punjab (Northern India)

BACKGROUND Drug addiction is on the rise in Punjab,India. There are 15 DDCs which are supported by the Indian Red Cross Society. There is alleged mushrooming of private Drug De-addiction Centres (DDCs) in the smaller towns, villages and cities of Punjab. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to evaluate DDCs in Punjab. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 10 DDCs were included in the study and scheduled visits were made to collect data by using a pre-tested questionnaire. RESULTS The duration of treatment was 1 month at the Red Cross DDCs and it was approximately 6 months at private DDCs. The staff at the private DDCs were inadequate. The major drugs which were abused by patients were Propoxyphene, Alcohol, Bhukki and Cannabis. Patients were usually referred to the DDCs either by family members (35.3%) or social workers (29.8%). About 72.5% of patients were married, 36.3% had passed 10th standard and 54.4% were employed. A majority dropped out of the DDCs due to personal reasons and lack of family support. On comparison, more patients were found to be treated at Red Cross centres (75.3%) than at private centres (65.8%). All DDCs had conducted regular sessions of individual, group and family counseling for patients. Red Cross DDCs ensured that ex-clients received follow-ups and home visits. More patients were satisfied with the services which were provided by the Red Cross DDCs. On the contrary, more patients at the private DDCs complained about harassment fromstaff personnel (p>0.05). CONCLUSION It is recommended that all DDCs should be checked regularly, and that the private centres should be provided with additional support from the government, to help run them more efficiently.