Miller Anna L, Miller Larry E, Bhattacharyya Mehul, Bhattacharyya Ruemon
Clinical Research, Miller Scientific, Johnson City, USA.
Data Analytics, Arizona State University, Tempe, USA.
Cureus. 2024 Jul 15;16(7):e64580. doi: 10.7759/cureus.64580. eCollection 2024 Jul.
Background and objective Sexual minorities experience large-scale mental health disparities, yet recent national data on them remains scarce. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms by sexual orientation in a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States (US). Methods This cross-sectional analysis utilized data from 26,311 adults in the 2022 National Health Interview Survey. Sexual orientation was classified as sexual minority (gay/lesbian, bisexual, or other non-heterosexual identity) or heterosexual. Self-reported depression was assessed using the eight-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), and anxiety was evaluated using the seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7). Logistic regression models were employed to compare mental health outcomes between sexual minority and heterosexual respondents. Results Sexual minorities comprised 6.6% of the weighted sample. Compared to heterosexuals, sexual minorities were younger, more often female, unmarried, and had higher poverty despite greater employment (all p<0.001). Approximately half of sexual minorities screened positive for depression (49.0%) and anxiety (44.3%), compared to 19.5% and 16.4% of heterosexuals, respectively. After covariate adjustment, sexual minorities had over three-fold higher odds of depression [odds ratio (OR): 3.27; 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.86-3.73] and anxiety (OR: 2.97; 95% CI: 2.57-3.42). The prevalence was highest among sexual minority youth, with depression in 54.9-61.1% and anxiety in 49.0-59.2%, depending on income levels. Conclusions In this nationally representative study, sexual minorities demonstrated a high burden of depression and anxiety symptoms compared to heterosexuals. Sexual orientation independently predicted mental health disparities beyond other sociodemographic characteristics. Targeted interventions are recommended to address psychiatric disease disparities that disproportionately impact vulnerable sexual minority subgroups.
背景与目的 性少数群体存在大规模心理健康差异，但近期关于他们的全国性数据仍然匮乏。本研究旨在在美国成年人的全国代表性样本中，按性取向检查抑郁和焦虑症状的患病率。方法 这项横断面分析利用了2022年全国健康访谈调查中26311名成年人的数据。性取向被分类为性少数群体（男同性恋/女同性恋、双性恋或其他非异性恋身份）或异性恋。使用八项患者健康问卷（PHQ-8）评估自我报告的抑郁情况，并使用七项广泛性焦虑障碍量表（GAD-7）评估焦虑情况。采用逻辑回归模型比较性少数群体和异性恋受访者的心理健康结果。结果 性少数群体占加权样本的6.6%。与异性恋者相比，性少数群体更年轻，女性比例更高，未婚，尽管就业情况较好但贫困率更高（所有p<0.001）。约一半的性少数群体抑郁筛查呈阳性（49.0%），焦虑筛查呈阳性（44.3%），相比之下，异性恋者的这一比例分别为19.5%和16.4%。在进行协变量调整后，性少数群体患抑郁症的几率高出三倍多[优势比（OR）：3.27；95%置信区间（CI）：2.86-3.73]，患焦虑症的几率也高出三倍多（OR：2.97；95%CI：2.57-3.42）。患病率在性少数群体青年中最高，根据收入水平，抑郁症患病率在54.9%-61.1%之间，焦虑症患病率在49.0%-59.2%之间。结论 在这项全国代表性研究中，与异性恋者相比，性少数群体表现出较高的抑郁和焦虑症状负担。性取向独立预测了超出其他社会人口学特征的心理健康差异。建议采取有针对性的干预措施，以解决对易受影响的性少数群体亚组产生不成比例影响的精神疾病差异。
