VESICOVAGINAL FISTULA

DEPRESSION AMONG WOMEN

Abstract

Objectives: To screen the women suffering from vesico-vaginal fistulae for
depression prior to surgery and different potential precipitating factors that may be involved.
Study Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted on 22 women diagnosed with
vesico-vaginal fistula admitted. Period: 15 April 2014 to 15 October 2014. Setting: Welfare
ward of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Unit at Isra University Hospital Hyderabad, Sindh–
Pakistan, waiting for surgery were included in the study. Material and method: Women with
other causes of urinary incontinence, any co-morbidity and pregnant women were excluded.
All data collected on a preformed proforma including the demographic data, profile of fistula
and attitude of the husbands, family and neighbors towards them and Hamilton rating scale
for depression (HAM-D) was used for screening the patients for depression, after the verbal
consent of individuals and was analyzed on SPSS version 16.0. Results: The mean age of 22
study participants was 36.36(±9.204) years ranging from 22-55.Majority 81.8% patients were
suffering from different severity of depression. Many patients wished they were dead, felt life
is not worth living, had suicidal ideas, and even one attempted to commit suicide. Majority of
patient’s husbands and family were sympathetic and encouraging but many were maltreated by
their neighbors (p=0.04). Conclusion: These patients are living with more than just a physical
defect which needs to be considered as part of their treatment.