Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Meta-Analysis
. 2022 Jun;61(2):287-305.
doi: 10.1111/bjc.12333. Epub 2021 Sep 26.

Global prevalence of depression and elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Shefaly Shorey  1 , Esperanza Debby Ng  1 , Celine H J Wong  2
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Global prevalence of depression and elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Shefaly Shorey et al. Br J Clin Psychol. 2022 Jun.

Abstract

Objective: Adolescence is a formative and turbulent phase where physiological, psychosocial, and cognitive changes leave adolescents vulnerable to psychological disorders. Given the lack of reviews that consolidate and compare worldwide prevalence of depression among adolescents, this review aims to examine the global prevalence of major depressive disorders, dysthymia, and elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents.

Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted. Six databases were searched for studies published from 2001 to December 2020. Seventy-two studies were included. Subgroup analysis were performed for year of publication, geographical region, gender, and assessment tools used.

Results: The global point prevalence rate of elevated self-reported depressive symptoms from 2001 to 2020 was 34% (95% CI: 0.30-0.38). Point prevalence for major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia was 8% (95% CI: 0.02-0.13) and 4% (95% CI: 0.01-0.07), respectively. The pooled one-year prevalence and lifetime prevalence for MDD were 8% (95% CI: 0.05-0.12) and 19% (95% CI: 0.12-0.26). Point prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents increased from 24% (95% CI: 0.19-0.28) between 2001 and 2010 to 37% (95% CI: 0.32-0.42) between 2011 and 2020. The Middle East, Africa, and Asia have the highest prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms, and female adolescents were reported to have a higher prevalence of elevated depressive symptoms than male adolescents.

Conclusion: Besides targeting those with existing clinical depression, research and policies should also focus on educational and supportive mitigation efforts to curb depressive symptoms among adolescents before escalation. The findings encourage future research to develop more gender-specific and culturally relevant intervention programmes.

Practitioner points: 34% of adolescents globally, aged 10-19 years, are at risk of developing clinical depression, which exceeds the reported estimates of individuals aged 18 to 25 years. Practitioners are highly encouraged to prioritize depression screening and intervention implementation for individuals in this age group. Female adolescents and adolescents from Middle East, Africa, and Asia have the highest risk of developing depression. This urges practitioners and researchers to develop more gender-specific and culturally relevant intervention programmes.

Keywords: adolescent; depression; depressive symptoms; prevalence; review.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Andrade, L., Caraveo-anduaga, J. J., Berglund, P., Bijl, R. V., Graaf, R. D., Vollebergh, W., … Wittchen, H.-U. (2003). The epidemiology of major depressive episodes: results from the International Consortium of Psychiatric Epidemiology (ICPE) Surveys. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 12, 3-21. https://doi.org/10.1002/mpr.138
    1. Arnove, R. F. (2013). Comparative education: The dialectic of the global and the local. Washington, DC: Rowman & Littlefield.
    1. American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 5th edn. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association
    1. Avenevoli, S. P., Swendsen, J. P., He, J.-P.-M.-S., Burstein, M. P., & Merikangas, K. R. P. (2015). Major depression in the national comorbidity survey-adolescent supplement: prevalence, correlates, and treatment. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 54, 37-44.e32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2014.10.010
    1. Baxter, A. J., Patton, G., Scott, K. M., Degenhardt, L., & Whiteford, H. A. (2013). Global epidemiology of mental disorders: what are we missing? PLoS One, 8, e65514. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0065514

LinkOut - more resources