Foo Xin Yee, Abdul Rahim Nur Arzuar, Lee Lai Kuan
Food Technology Program, School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Gelugor, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.
Department of Clinical Medicine, Universiti Sains Malaysia Bertam Medical Center, 13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.
MethodsX. 2024 Nov 22;13:103069. doi: 10.1016/j.mex.2024.103069. eCollection 2024 Dec.
Mental health is a state of mind influences one thinking, feeling and acting from inside and outside that are vital for children's normal growth and development. Psychological distress may results in serious mental health problem if left untreated. Hence, early diagnosis can largely improve the condition from being deteriorating. This study determined the prevalence of psychological distress and its associated risk factors among children in Penang, Malaysia. The study applied stratified multistage cluster sampling for the recruitment of children, and their socio-demographics background, health and lifestyle practices, and the prevalence and risk factors of psychological distress were succinctly studied. The study provides a fundamental platform for informing parents and policy makers about psychological distress, and the need to strategize potential health intervention for achieving optimum human well-being.•Stratified multistage cluster sampling was useful to study the prevalence and risk factors of psychological distress in a children population.•DASS-Y is robust for brief dimensional measure of depression, anxiety and stress among children.
心理健康是一种心理状态，它从内部和外部影响一个人的思维、情感和行为，对儿童的正常成长和发展至关重要。如果不加以治疗，心理困扰可能会导致严重的心理健康问题。因此，早期诊断可以在很大程度上改善病情恶化的状况。本研究确定了马来西亚槟城儿童心理困扰的患病率及其相关风险因素。该研究采用分层多阶段整群抽样方法招募儿童，并简要研究了他们的社会人口统计学背景、健康和生活方式习惯，以及心理困扰的患病率和风险因素。该研究为告知家长和政策制定者有关心理困扰以及制定潜在健康干预策略以实现最佳人类福祉的必要性提供了一个基本平台。
•分层多阶段整群抽样有助于研究儿童群体中心理困扰的患病率和风险因素。
•儿童抑郁、焦虑和压力量表（DASS-Y）对于儿童抑郁、焦虑和压力的简短维度测量是可靠的。
