scholarly journals Prevalence of mental disorders in prisons in the UK: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S283-S284
Author(s):  
Nivedita Rebbapragada ◽  
Vivek Furtado ◽  
George William Hawker-Bond

AimsTo report pooled prevalence of all mental disorders among the general prison population in the United Kingdom (UK). This includes individuals in Young Offender Institutions (YOI), youth custody and adult prisons across all categories. A secondary aim explores possible sources of heterogeneity by performing subgroup and meta-regression analysis across certain covariates (e.g. sex of prisoner). We hypothesise that contemporary estimates of mental disorders are higher than the general population.BackgroundPrevalence of mental health problems among prisoners are considerably higher than the general population; this poses an important public health concern. Individuals who require diversion to appropriate psychiatric services are becoming embroiled in the revolving door of the criminal justice system. However, there are no up-to-date reviews assessing prevalence of mental disorders across the general prison population in the UK. This study aims to address this gap.MethodWe conducted a systematic search of PsycINFO (1923 – October 2019), MEDLINE (1946 – October 2019), EMBASE (1947 – October 2019) and Web of Science (all years) of articles reporting prevalence of mental disorders in UK prison populations (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42019132685). The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Appraisal Checklist for Studies Reporting Prevalence Data assessed study quality and bias. Pooled prevalence of each mental disorder was calculated using Stata statistical software 16.0 via the metaprop command. Forest plots present prevalence estimates with study weights and associated 95% confidence intervals (CI). Overall, 20 studies satisfied inclusion criteria, comprising of 12,335 prisoners across England, Wales and Scotland.ResultWe identified higher rates of neurotic disorders (28.9%, 95% CI 0.71–74.7%), personality disorders (23.5%, 95% CI 13.6–35.2%), alcohol (22.7%, 95% CI 12.2–35.1%) and drug dependence (26.7%, 95% CI 15.0–40.4%). The lowest prevalence rates included schizophrenia (2.42%, 95% CI 0.78–4.84%), panic disorders (3.88%, 95% CI 3.17% – 4.64%), adjustment disorders (3.83%, 95% CI 1.19–7.84%) and intellectual disability (2.90%, 95% CI 0.90–5.80%). Meta-regressions for psychotic disorder and personality disorder revealed no significant differences across study year, sample size and gender.ConclusionOur prevalence estimates of mental disorders in prisons are higher than the general English population. However, we should acknowledge the influence of considerable heterogeneity. These findings demonstrate the need to quantify current prevalence of mental disorders amongst prisoners in the UK. We recommend for the government to consider performing an up-to-date census of psychiatric morbidity to facilitate service provision.

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Rebecca Rhead ◽  
Deirdre MacManus ◽  
Margaret Jones ◽  
Neil Greenberg ◽  
Nicola T Fear ◽  
...  

Abstract Background For a small minority of personnel, military service can have a negative impact on their mental health. Yet no studies have assessed how the mental health of UK veterans (who served during the recent operations in Afghanistan or Iraq) compares to non-veterans, to determine if they are at a disadvantage. We examine the prevalence of mental disorders and alcohol misuse in UK veterans compared to non-veterans. Methods Veteran data were taken from the third phase of the King's Centre for Military Health Research cohort study (n = 2917). These data were compared with data on non-veterans taken from two large general population surveys: 2014 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey (n = 5871) and wave 6 of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS, n = 22 760). Results We found that, overall, UK veterans who served at the time of recent military operations were more likely to report a significantly higher prevalence of common mental disorders (CMD) (23% v. 16%), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (8% v. 5%) and alcohol misuse (11% v. 6%) than non-veterans. Stratifying by gender showed that the negative impact of being a veteran on mental health and alcohol misuse was restricted to male veterans. Being ill or disabled was associated with a higher prevalence of CMD and PTSD for both veterans and non-veterans. Conclusion Whilst the same sociodemographic groups within the veteran and non-veteran populations seemed to have an increased risk of mental health problems (e.g. those who were unemployed), male veterans, in particular, appear to be at a distinct disadvantage compared to those who have never served.


2006 ◽  
Vol 189 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petros Skapinakis ◽  
Scott Weich ◽  
Glyn Lewis ◽  
Nicola Singleton ◽  
Ricardo Araya

BackgroundIndividuals in lower socio-economic groups have an increased prevalence of common mental disorders.AimsTo investigate the longitudinal association between socio-economic position and common mental disorders in a general population sample in the UK.MethodParticipants (n=2406) were assessed at two time points 18 months apart with the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule. The sample was stratified into two cohorts according to mental health status at baseline.ResultsNone of the socio-economic indicators studied was significantly associated with an episode of common mental disorder at follow-up after adjusting for baseline psychiatric morbidity. The analysis of separate diagnostic categories showed that subjective financial difficulties at baseline were independently associated with depression at follow-up in both cohorts.ConclusionsThese findings support the view that apart from objective measures of socio-economic position, more subjective measures might be equally important from an aetiological or clinical perspective.


2000 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Henderson ◽  
Gavin Andrews ◽  
Wayne Hall

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to estimate the 1-month and 1-year prevalence of mental disorders in the Australian adult population; to determine the amount of disablement associated with this; and to determine the use of health and other services by persons with common mental disorders. Method: For the Adult Survey, a household sample of 10 600 persons aged 18 years and over were interviewed across Australia by experienced field staff of the Australian Bureau of Statistics. This was 78%% of the target sample. The interview consisted of the composite international diagnostic interview in its automated presentation (CIDI-A) and other components to determine disablement, use of services and satisfaction with services received. The diagnostic classifications used in the analyses were both ICD-10 and DSM-IV. Only the results from ICD-10 are reported here. Results: A total of 17.7%% of the sample had one or more common mental disorders, anxiety, depression, alcohol or substance abuse and neurasthenia. This morbidity was associated with considerable disablement in daily life: 3 days of impaired social role performance in the previous 4 weeks, compared with 1 day for the general population. Of all cases, 64.6%% had had no contact with health services in the previous year; 29.4%% had seen GPs and 7.5%% had seen psychiatrists. Conclusion: Australia now has its own national estimates of psychiatric morbidity. The morbidity is associated with considerable disablement, but most of it is untreated. General practitioners encounter by far the largest proportion of those reaching services.


2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (7) ◽  
pp. 1037-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROSHNI MANGALORE ◽  
MARTIN KNAPP ◽  
RACHEL JENKINS

Background. Reduction of health inequalities is a major policy goal in the UK. While there is general recognition of the disadvantaged position of people with mental health problems, the extent of inequality, particularly the association with socio-economic characteristics, has not been widely studied. We aimed to measure income-related inequality in the distribution of psychiatric disorders and to compare with inequality in other health domains.Method. The concentration index (CI) approach was used to examine income-related inequality in mental health using data from the Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2000 for Britain.Results. There is marked inequality unfavourable to lower income groups with respect to mental health disorders. The extent of inequality increases with the severity of problems, with the greatest inequality observed for psychosis. Income-related inequality for psychiatric disorders is higher than for general health in the UK. Standardized CIs suggest that these inequalities are not due to the demographic composition of the income quintiles.Conclusions. Income-related inequalities exist in mental health in Britain. As much of the observed inequality is probably due to factors associated with income and not due to the demographic composition of the income quintiles, it may be that these inequalities are potentially ‘avoidable’.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Laverty ◽  
Andrew Surtees ◽  
Rory O’Sullivan ◽  
Daniel Sutherland ◽  
Christopher Jones ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Preterm birth (<37 weeks) adversely affects development in behavioural, cognitive and mental health domains. Heightened rates of autism are identified in preterm populations, indicating that prematurity may confer an increased likelihood of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. The present meta-analysis aims to synthesise existing literature and calculate pooled prevalence estimates for rates of autism characteristics in preterm populations. Methods Search terms were generated from inspection of relevant high-impact papers and a recent meta-analysis. Five databases were searched from database creation until December 2020 with PRISMA guidelines followed throughout. Results 10,900 papers were retrieved, with 52 papers included in the final analyses, further classified by assessment method (screening tools N=30, diagnostic assessment N=29). Pooled prevalence estimates for autism in preterm samples was 20% when using screening tools and 6% when using diagnostic assessments. The odds of an autism diagnosis were 3.3 times higher in individuals born preterm than in the general population. Conclusions The pooled prevalence estimate of autism characteristics in individuals born preterm is considerably higher than in the general population. Findings highlight the clinical need to provide further monitoring and support for individuals born preterm.


2010 ◽  
Vol 197 (5) ◽  
pp. 411-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dheeraj Rai ◽  
Petros Skapinakis ◽  
Nicola Wiles ◽  
Glyn Lewis ◽  
Ricardo Araya

SummaryIn a representative sample of the UK population we found that common mental disorders (as a group and in ICD–10 diagnostic categories) and subthreshold psychiatric symptoms at baseline were both independently associated with new-onset functional disability and significant days lost from work at 18-month follow-up. Subthreshold symptoms contributed to almost half the aggregate burden of functional disability and over 32 million days lost from work in the year preceding the study. Leaving these symptoms unaccounted for in surveys may lead to gross underestimation of disability related to psychiatric morbidity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (08) ◽  
pp. 1316-1323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Jacob ◽  
Josep Maria Haro ◽  
Ai Koyanagi

AbstractBackgroundData on the relationship between intelligence quotient (IQ) and violence perpetration are scarce and nationally representative data from the UK adult population is lacking. Therefore, our goal was to examine the relationship between IQ and violence perpetration using nationally representative community-based data from the UK.MethodsWe analyzed cross-sectional data from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey. IQ was estimated using the National Adult Reading Test (NART). Violence perpetration referred to being in a physical fight or having deliberately hit anyone in the past 5 years. We conducted logistic regression analysis to assess the association between IQ (exposure variable) and violence perpetration (outcome variable).ResultsThere were 6872 participants aged ⩾16 years included in this study. The prevalence of violence perpetration decreased linearly with increasing IQ [16.3% (IQ 70–79) v. 2.9% (IQ 120–129)]. After adjusting for demographic and behavioral factors, childhood adversity, and psychiatric morbidity, compared with those with IQ 120–129, IQ scores of 110–119, 100–109, 90–99, 80–89, and 70–79 were associated with 1.07 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.63–1.84], 1.90 (95% CI 1.12–3.22), 1.80 (95% CI 1.05–3.13), 2.36 (95% CI 1.32–4.22), and 2.25 (95% CI 1.26–4.01) times higher odds for violence perpetration, respectively.ConclusionsLower IQ was associated with violence perpetration in the UK general population. Further studies are warranted to assess how low IQ can lead to violence perpetration, and whether interventions are possible for this high-risk group.


1996 ◽  
Vol 169 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maurice M. Ohayon ◽  
Robert G. Priest ◽  
Malijaï Caulet ◽  
Christian Guilleminault

BackgroundHypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucinations are common in narcolepsy. However, the prevalence of these phenomena in the general population is uncertain.MethodA representative community sample of 4972 people in the UK, aged 15–100, was interviewed by telephone (79.6% of those contacted). Interviews were performed by lay interviewers using a computerised system that guided the interviewer through the interview process.ResultsThirty-seven per cent of the sample reported experiencing hypnagogic hallucinations and 12.5% reported hypnopompic hallucinations. Both types of hallucinations were significantly more common among subjects with symptoms of insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness or mental disorders. According to this study, the prevalence of narcolepsy in the UK is 0.04%.ConclusionsHypnagogic and hypnopompic hallucinations were much more common than expected, with a prevalence that far exceeds that which can be explained by the association with narcolepsy. Hypnopompic hallucinations may be a better indicator of narcolepsy than hypnagogic hallucinations in subjects reporting excessive daytime sleepiness.


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