Prevalence, persistence, and severity of 12-month and 30-day DSM-5 disorders in the World Mental Health Hong Kong Study

Background

The World Mental Health Hong Kong (WMHHK) Study aims to estimate 12-month and 30-day prevalence, persistence, severity, and correlates of DSM-5 anxiety, mood, and externalising disorders in Hong Kong, a densely populated city impacted by consecutive population-level stressors, including social unrest and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Findings

Twelve-month and 30-day prevalence of any DSM-5 mental disorder were 10.6% (95% CI: 9.5–11.8) and 7.8% (95% CI: 6.7–8.9), respectively. Twelve-month prevalence was highest for anxiety disorders (8.0%, 95% CI: 7.1–8.9), followed by mood (4.3%, 95% CI: 3.4–5.2) and externalising (1.7%, 95% CI: 0.9–2.4) disorders. Twelve-month persistence among lifetime cases was 49.0%, overall and higher for anxiety (55.6%) than mood (39.0%) or externalising (35.3%) disorders. Younger and middle-aged adults, and who were not currently married, had elevated risks, while lower education was associated with greater disorder severity. Comorbidity was associated with increased persistence and severity across disorders.