title: Screening for depression in a sample of Egyptian secondary school female students.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Depression is common in female adolescents. Data on prevalence rates, socio-demographic correlates, and putative risk factors in Egyptian population are needed along with better screening tools to inform future research and service development. We aimed to estimate the point prevalence of depression in a representative sample of Egyptian female students; to detect the sensitivity and specificity of CDI as a screening tool, and to highlight some putative risk factors associated with depression.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multistage random selection of 602 female students from public and private secondary schools in Eastern Cairo. All participants were subjected to screening using the Children Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Non-patient version of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV axis-I disorders.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Depression was estimated to be 15.3% by CDI in comparison to 13.3% by SCID-I/NP. The sensitivity and specificity of CDI were 74.8% and 97.6% respectively. Regression Analysis pointed to a number of predictive factors as; academic underachievement, quarrelsome family atmosphere, socioeconomic status, negative life events and family history of psychiatric disorders.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The cross-sectional design, the lack of collateral information and access to records precluded inference of casualty. The lack of the rural comparator and samples from other governorates limits the generalisation of results.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Depression was prevalent in a sample of Egyptian female secondary school students. It correlated with some psychosocial factors and can be effectively screened using CDI. Hence, there is a need for better screening, Psychoeducational programmes, and services for better identification, early intervention and targeting for those at risk.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: El-Missiry
authors.affiliation: Institute of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Hospital, Cairo, Egypt. Electronic address: marwaasoltan@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Soltan
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: M Abdel
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hadi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sabry
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D004534:Egypt; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening; D015995:Prevalence; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012307:Risk Factors; D012574:Schools; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*