Аңдатпа
Background Globally depression presents one of the major public health problems and the WHO predicts it to be the second leading cause of disability worldwide by 2020. Depression was shown to be the most prevalent mental health problem in the population exposed to unfavorable environmental factors. More than 450 nuclear tests took place at the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site, Kazakhstan, in the period from 1949 to 1989. Therefore, now we can expect to find higher prevalence of depression in offspring of exposed population. Objectives This study aimed to screen for major depressive disorder (MDD) among descendants of people affected to radiation due to nuclear tests as compared to the descendants of unaffected people. Methods Overall we interviewed 467 people for the presence of MDD with the help of PHQ-9. The study group included 234 people who were born from 1965 to 1999 in Abay region with parental average radiation dose 466 mSv. Control group was representative by age and sex and included 233 offspring of non-exposed parents from Kurchum region. Results The rate of moderate to severe MDD (cut-off 10 on PHQ-9 scale) in the study group was 56.4% (132/234), and 41.6% (97/233) in the control group. Suicidal thoughts in depressed people—represented by Question 9 on PHQ-9 scale—were attributed to 11.5% (27/234) people from study group and to 8.1% (19/233) of the controls (p < 0.05). This could be considered high since a substantial proportion of people expressing suicidal thoughts accounts for half of lethal or nonlethal suicide attempts. Conclusions Depression is more common in the offspring of people exposed to radiation. There is a need to raise awareness among general public and medical professionals of the high prevalence of depression in this category of people. Key messages: There is a need to facilitate open discussion of the psychological effects of radiation exposure. We recommend periodical screening for the MDD to facilitate timely diagnosis and treatment.