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Depression - A major public health problem
Depressive disorders are characterized by a recurrent, often chronic course. They can impair the quality of life more than any other diseases. The recently conducted ESEmed study found out that e.g. in France the 12 months prevalence of depression in people aged 18-65 is about 6,5% and about 21% of the population suffered from a depression one time in their life (Hegerl et al., 2009 in EUPHIX). Often patients suffering from severe major depression commit attempted or completed suicide.
Suicide
More than 90% of suicides occur in the context of a psychiatric disorder, depression being by far the most important one. Annually, more than 58, 000 thousand persons in the countries of the European Union commit suicide. Suicide rates per country range from 5,92 per 100,000 in Italy up to 25 per 100,000 in Slovenia (WHO data, 2001-2003).Europe-wide, dying from suicide accounts for the second highest risk of death for young men and the third highest risk for young women. About 14% of all suicides occur in the age range of 15–24 (Report on the state of young people’s health in the EU, EC Working Paper). Compared to the number of suicide deaths, the number of suicide attempts is assumed to be much higher.
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Last update: 03.09.2010