Reports on the first survey to administer a structured psychiatric
interview on a national scale. National Comorbidity Survey; Researcher
Ronald C. Kessler, PhD; Findings on frequency and scope of mental illness
among Americans.
By
PT Staff, published on July 01, 1994
Mental Illness
There's more mental illness in America than anyone previous&
suspected. The first nationally representative survey reveals that nearly
one-half of all Americans between the ages of iS and 54 have experienced
an episode of psychiatric disorder some time in their lives, 30 percent
of them within the past year.
What's more, most mental illness tends to cluster in a small number
of individuals, according to the results of the National Comorbidity
Survey. Fifty-six percent of people with a history of one psychiatric
disorder also suffer from a multiplicity of others. Roughly 5.2 million
Americans account for 90 percent of all episodes of severe mental illness
each year.
The clustering of psychiatric illness in one patient, or
comorbidity, makes psychiatric disorders harder to diagnose and more
difficult to treat.
Spearheaded by Ronald C. Kessler, Ph.D., of the University of
Michigan, the survey is the first to administer a structured psychiatric
interview on a national scale. It provides a comprehensive picture of how
and where mental illness strikes Americans, as well as risk
factors.
The findings included a couple of surprises: Although they face
generally inferior financial and economic conditions than whites, blacks
have a lower incidence of anxiety disorders and substance abuse. And
contrary to the findings of other studies, Americans living in rural
areas were no less likely than their urban counterparts to suffer from a
lifetime of or one-year psychiatric disorders.
Among the findings:
o One sixth of the population suffers from one or more lifetime
psychiatric disorders. Only 40 percent of them ever receive psychiatric
care.
o Men exhibit higher rates of substance abuse and antisocial
disorders than do women, who seem to suffer more commonly from affective
and anxiety disorders.
o Seventeen percent of the population have suffered one or more
episode of major depression at some time in their lives.
o The highest overall rates of mental illness occur between the
ages of 25 and 34, then decline with age.
o The rates of almost all disorders decline with income and
education, with the exception of lifetime substance use, which is
significantly higher among the middle-education group.
o Lifetime substance use disorders and lifetime antisocial
personality disorders are highest in the West, while lifetime anxiety
disorders are highest in the Northeast.
It's official! New York City is indeed the Big A for
anxiety.
ILLUSTRATION
Tags:
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