{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,19]],"date-time":"2026-10-19T20:42:54Z","timestamp":1792442574744,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"African Journals Online (AJOL)","issue":"2","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Mal. Med. J"],"abstract":"<jats:p>BackgroundThe high global prevalence of mental disorders justifies the need to quantify their burden in the sub-Saharan Africa where there is a dearth of information. These mental disorders are linked to different socio-demographic factors.ObjectiveTo determine the prevalence of, and factors associated with mental disorders among children and adolescents in Blantyre City, Malawi.Methods\r\nChildren and adolescents aged 6 to 17 years were interviewed to determine their socio-demographic characteristics and assess their mental health status using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS). Associations between mental disorders and socio-demographic characteristics were tested using Chi-square and logistic regression analysis.ResultsThe prevalence of symptoms of psychopathology on the SDQ was 7.3% (95%CI 4.8-10.5%) while for the K-SADS was 5.9% (95% CI 3.7%-8.9%). The prevalence of mental disorders across the age ranges of 6 to 12 years and 13 to 17 years was 5.4% and 7.9 % respectively. Males had a higher prevalence (7.1%) compared to females (4.7%). Conduct disorder was most prevalent (3.4%), followed by either type of ADHD- Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorders (2.0%). Having a single parent (p&lt;0.001), staying with a non-biological guardian (p&lt;0.030), engaging in paid work (p&lt;0.039), not attending school (p&lt;0.019) and having teacher difficulties(p&lt;0.028) were positively associated with a mental disorder.ConclusionThe socio-demographic factors associated with the risk of developing mental disorders may be important targets for mental health intervention programs.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4314\/mmj.v34i2.5","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,6]],"date-time":"2022-07-06T10:12:59Z","timestamp":1657102379000},"page":"105-110","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":15,"title":["Prevalence and correlates of common mental disorders  among children and adolescents in Blantyre-Urban,  Malawi"],"prefix":"10.4314","volume":"34","author":[{"given":"Ian","family":"Matandika","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Donnie","family":"Mategula","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stephen","family":"Kasenda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yetunde","family":"Adeniyi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Adamson","family":"Muula","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"2895","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,1]]},"container-title":["Malawi Medical Journal"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/mmj\/article\/download\/227534\/214776","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/mmj\/article\/download\/227534\/214776","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,6]],"date-time":"2022-07-06T10:13:48Z","timestamp":1657102428000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/mmj\/article\/view\/227534"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,1]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,1]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4314\/mmj.v34i2.5","relation":{},"ISSN":["1995-7262","1995-7262"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1995-7262","type":"electronic"},{"value":"1995-7262","type":"print"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,1]]}}}