Prevalence of Unrecognised Depression Among Outpatient Department Attendees of A Rural Hospital in Delhi, India Key words: Unrecognised depression, Outpatients, Secondary level rural hospital, Socio-demographic factors

IntrOductIOn Mental and behavioural disorders accounts for 12% of the global burden of disease. The global prevalence of mental and behavioural disorders among the adult population is estimated to be 10% and contributed to four of the ten leading causes of disability [1]. These disorders account for low productivity and poor health of the people. Among mental disorders, depression is one of the most common disorders which presents with a variety of symptoms. More than 150 million persons suffer from depression at any point of time in the world [2]. Depression is the leading cause of disability as measured by Years Lived with Disability (YLDs) and was 4th leading contributor to the global burden of disease in 2000. By the year 2020, depression is projected to reach 2nd place of the ranking of Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) calculated for all ages and both sexes. Today, depression is already the 2nd cause of DALYs in the age category 15-44 years for both sexes combined [3]. The lifetime prevalence of depression is 12.1% [4]. Depression accounts for 5% of the total burden of disease from all causes [5]. A large population-based study from South India reported overall prevalence of depression to be 15.1% after adjusting for age using the 2001 Indian census data [6].