Background: Recent reports revealed that the number of single mothers has been increasing day by day in Dhaka city; however, their psychological problems have not been studied yet.
Aim: We aimed to see the proportion of single mothers having depressive and anxiety disorders.
Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted under the supervision of the Department of Psychiatry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka from August 2016 to July 2017. A total of 156 single mothers from three social strata, namely, lower-, middle- and upper-class group were included purposively. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire consisting of demography and structured clinical interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth edition, axis-I disorders, clinician version (SCID-I-CV) which were analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.
Results: This study showed that the mean age of the single mothers was 34.8 ± 8.9 years. The overall 48.8% of single mothers had either depressive and/or anxiety disorders where 17.3% depressive disorder, 21.2% anxiety disorders and 10.3% had a dual diagnosis. Major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder were the most common specific diagnosis.
Conclusion: This study provided us a sound background knowledge regarding psychiatric disorders among single mothers. This study shows the need for larger research on this issue and early detection would help them to improve the quality of life.
Keywords: Bangladesh; Dhaka city; Single mother; anxiety; depression.