Factors associated with depression: sex differences between residents of Quilombo communities

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The Quilombola population is subject to numerous sources of social vulnerability, but few studies investigate their physical or mental health conditions. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the factors associated with depression in men and women, separately. METHODOLOGY: Cross-sectional population-based study with 764 randomly selected participants from five quilombo communities in Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil. The cutoff point for depression was ≥ 10 points, assessed by the Patient Health Questionnaire score (PHQ-9), and the presence of five or more symptoms. We estimated the prevalence ratio with 95% confidence intervals using Poisson regression models with robust estimators stratified by gender. RESULTS: Among men, factors associated with depression were previous diagnosis of chronic illnesses, poor/very poor health self-assessment, and poor access to health services. Among women, the associated factors were previous diagnosis of psychiatric disorders, poor/very poor health self-perception, history of tobacco smoking, and self-declaration of race as not black. CONCLUSION: Factors associated with depression differ between men and women and must be considered in interventions to fight depression within this population.