Objective: To study the prevalence of, and factors associated with anxiety and depression among women.
Design: A cross sectional survey.
Setting: A lower middle class semi-urban community of Karachi, Pakistan.
Participants: A total of 1218 women between the ages of 18-50 years.
Methodology: Systematically every third household was identified from which a woman was randomly selected. The Aga Khan University Anxiety and Depression Scale and a socio-demographic questionnaire were administered verbally by trained interviewers for assessing the prevalence of, and associated factors for anxiety and depression.
Results: A prevalence of 30% was found. Increasing age, lack of education and verbal abuse were the associated factors found to have an independent relationship.
Conclusion: Providing education and reducing domestic abuse could lead to decrease in the prevalence of anxiety and depression in women.