title: The prevalence and associations of psychiatric disorder in children in Kerala, South India.
abstract: This study aimed to identify the prevalence and associations of childhood psychiatric disorder in Calicut District, South India. Among 1403 children aged 8 to 12 years selected by random cluster sampling, a projected prevalence of 9.4% (95% CI 7.9-10.8%) was found. Associations of disorder with male sex, the Muslim religion, lower social class, less parental education, school failure, and impaired reading and vocabulary were found, but not with malnutrition or perinatal problems. The similarity to associations of disorder in Western studies was noted. The discussion focuses on the validity of comparisons of prevalence across cultures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Royal Oldham Hospital, UK.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hackett
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hackett
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bhakta
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gowers
mesh_terms: D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D012307:Risk Factors; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology