BMJ 2001;322:482-484 ( 24 February )

Education and debate

Depression in developing countries: lessons from Zimbabwe

Vikram Patel, Beit research fellow ^a, Melanie Abas, lecturer ^a, Jeremy Broadhead, lecturer ^a, Charles Todd, senior lecturer ^b, Anthony Reeler, lecturer ^c. 

^a University of Zimbabwe Medical School, Harare, Zimbabwe, ^b Department of Community Medicine, University of Zimbabwe Medical School, ^c Department of Psychiatry, University of Zimbabwe Medical School

Correspondence to: V Patel, Sangath Centre, 841/1Alto Porvorim, Goa 403521, India vikpat@goatelecom.com

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Depression is one of the most important causes of morbidity and disability in developing countries.¹ Zimbabwe, in common with other developing nations, has absolute poverty, economic reform programmes, limited public health services, widespread private and traditional healthcare services, civil unrest, cultural diversity, and sex inequality. We have conducted research on depression in Zimbabwe over the past 15 years, covering ethnographic and epidemiological studies in a range of populations. We compared our findings with research from other developing countries and with evidence from industrialised countries. In the context of developing countries we examined the validity of World Health Organization classifications and medical concepts of depression, the public health implications of depression, and the implications for clinical practice and research.

Table Removed (Available Only in the Full Text)

	The validity of Western biomedical models of depression

In Zimbabwe, multiple somatic complaints such as headaches and fatigue are the most common presentations of depression. ^{2 3} On inquiry, however, most patients freely admit to cognitive and emotional symptoms.⁴ Many somatic symptoms, especially . . . [Full text of this article]

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