The topic that we learned this week is “Major depression in Kunming: Prevalence, correlates an co-morbidity in a south-western city of China”. The aim of  this study was to examine the prevalence and correlates of major depressive    disorder(MDD) in Kunming-the capital city of Yunnan Province in south-western China.

     From the study we know that the prevalence rate of major depression is lower in Kunming city. Close attention to public health approaches are required to address the relationships between social isolation, urban population, unemployed and high educational people. The final sample was composed of 5033 subjects. It was considered representative of the adult population aged 15 years or older. The diagnostic instrument was the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview version 2.1(CIDI 2.1). Weights were applied to the sample date to adjust for demographic variables, and the differential probabilities of selection within the household. Simple cross-tabulations of prevalence estimates were used to calculate prevalence. Standard errors of prevalence estimates were computed using the design-based Jackknife Repeated Replications(JRR)method implemented in the STATA software system to adjust for the design effects. Associations with socio-demographics and comorbid disorders were examined using logistic regression analysis.

    In the study, there are several limitations. In order to devise methodological improvements and to lead to more accurate and presumably higher prevalence estimates, it should be added culture-sensitive questions for the symptoms of depression and made other modifications to the depression section of the interview.

                                                                                               （Li Nannan）