Anxiety and depression: population distribution and family associations

Abstract

Aim. The aim of the study was to characterize the population distribution of psychiatric phenotypes according to anxiety and depression. Methods. The level of anxiety and depression was assessed with the HADS Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale test. Students in grades 9-11 of secondary schools in Kharkiv, as well as their parents, were tested. We tested 306 persons from 115 families. Results. The frequency of depression among men in the Kharkiv population is 9%, among women 11%, among boys 15%, among girls 22%; the frequency of increased anxiety among men is 14%, among women 22%, among boys 19%, among girls 44%. There is a positive relationship between anxiety and depression in older men and women, expressed by the association coefficient in men rDT =0.45, in women rDT =0.79. The relatives revealed a similarity in psychological types, described by the association index for depression in mother/daughter pairs r = 0.40, mother/son r = 0.03, father/daughter r = 0.20, father/son r = 0.40; for anxiety: mother/daughter r = 0.15, mother/son r = 0.05, father/daughter r = 0.24, father/son r = 0.01. Conclusions. Individuals of the younger generation are more likely to have signs of anxiety and depression than those of their parents' generation. The parent-offspring phenotype relationship is stronger in same-sex couples compared to opposite-sex couples. Keywords: depression, anxiety, population distribution, family analysis.