Abstract
Abstract
Background
The prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms in semi-elite Australian footballers is unknown. The primary objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) and depressive symptoms in semi-elite Australian Football players. Our secondary objective was to explore the association between demographic and football-specific factors with GAD and depressive symptoms. A cross-sectional epidemiological study including 369 semi-elite Western Australian Football League (WAFL) players from the Men and Women’s 2022 season (n = 337 men, 91%) was conducted. Symptoms of depression were measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scale (PHQ-9) and symptoms of GAD with the GAD-7 scale.
Results
Our response rate was 82.9%. Thirteen players had missing data. The prevalence of GAD symptoms was 8.5% in men and 28.6% in women (10% overall). The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 20% in men and 57% in women (23% overall). Being a woman (gender) was associated with a sevenfold increased risk of GAD and/or depression symptoms [odds ratio (OR): 7.33, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.18–16.92; p < 0.001]. Players of ‘Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander’ ethnicity were two times more likely to report GAD and/or depression symptoms in comparison to players of ‘Australian’ ethnicity (OR: 2.13; 95% CI: 1.01–4.49; p = 0.048). Concussion history was not a significant risk factor for GAD or depression symptoms.
Conclusion
This study demonstrated that approximately 1 in 10 WAFL players met the diagnostic cut-off criteria for probable GAD, and 1 in 5 for probable depression. The prevalence for depression symptoms in this study were far higher than the national average in the comparative age bracket. WAFL women’s players also reported a substantially higher prevalence of GAD and depressive symptoms than men, and should be further investigated as a priority by the WAFL.
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation,Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
Reference35 articles.
1. Industry F. AFL Participation Figures http://www.footyindustry.com/?p=41382017.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics. National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/mental-health/national-study-mental-health-and-wellbeing/latest-release: Australian Bureau of Statistics; 2022 updated 22/07/2022.
3. Gulliver A, Griffiths KM, Mackinnon A, Batterham PJ, Stanimirovic R. The mental health of Australian elite athletes. J Sci Med Sport. 2015;18(3):255–61.
4. Kilic Ö, Carmody S, Upmeijer J, Kerkhoffs G, Purcell R, Rice S, et al. Prevalence of mental health symptoms among male and female Australian professional footballers. BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med. 2021;7(3): e001043.
5. Ito T, Fetters MD, Kipps C, Kumar B. Depressive symptoms among male professional soccer players in Japan. Asian J Sport Exercise Psychol 2023.
Cited by
1 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献