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Household Survey of Psychiatric Morbidity in Cambodia

St Luc Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Hippocrate Av, 10, 1200 Brussels, Belgium. dubois{at}pscl.ucl.ac.be

René Tonglet

Epidemiology Unit, Universite Catholique de Louvain, School of Public Health, Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, Brussels, Belgium.

Philippe Hoyois

Universite Catholique de Louvain, School of Public Health, Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, Brussels, Belgium.

Ka Sunbaunat

University of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicicine, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Jean-Paul Roussaux

University Hospital Saint-Luc, Department of Psychiatry.

Edvard Hauff

University of Oslo, Psychosocial Centre for refugees, Oslo, Norway.

Aims: To estimate the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms in the Kampong Cham province and to determine the association between these symptoms and an impaired social functioning.

Methods: Cross-sectional cluster sample survey conducted among adults randomly selected within 50 clusters distributed over the province.

Results: Of the respondents, 42.4% reported symptoms that met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition criteria for depression, 53% displayed high anxiety symptoms and 7.3% met posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) criteria. Posttraumatic symptoms of intrusion and avoidance were present in 47.8% and 45.4% respectively. When reviewing comorbidities, 29.2% had depression and anxiety symptoms, 16.5% anxiety symptoms, 6.1% depression and 7.1% had triple comorbidity (PTSD, depression and anxiety). Regarding social functioning, 25.3% reported being socially impaired. Respondents with comorbid symptoms for depression, anxiety and PTSD were associated with an increased risk for social impairment compared with others. Being over 65 years and having experienced violent events were other factors associated with social impairment.

Conclusion: Five years after the return of a more stable context in Cambodia, the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms in the community remains high. In addition, these symptoms are strongly associated with social impairment. This suggests that beyond psychosocial programs, the implementation of adapted clinical psychiatric care should be considered as a priority.

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