Abstract

Background: There is wide gap of information about the prevalence of different conditions of mental health in general population except anxiety and depression. And that too among children and adolescents. Hence, a study about one of the important conditions, psychosomatic condition was carried out in this age group, i.e., 8–15 years, a combination representing both child and adolescent population. Considering the difficulties in child inquiries and for unanimity of method among adolescents included in the study, parents’ questionnaire was used.Objectives: The objectives of this study were as follows: (1) To find the prevalence of psychosomatic condition in the age group of 8–15 years in the study area and (2) to find the prevalence of psychosomatic condition in relation to their sex, education, socioeconomic class, and birth order.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study using parents’ questionnaire with sampling by probability proportion to sample size method. Chi-square is used to detect if there is any significant difference.
Results: The psychosomatic condition is found to be more prevalent in girls (9.42%) as compared to males (7.89%). This is significantly more in rural and slum community (31.25% and 23.08%) than urban area (4.59%). In urban area, psychosomatic condition is found to be higher in males. However, the overall difference between girls and boys for the reporting of this condition was found to be statistically non-significant.
Conclusions: The reporting for psychosomatic condition in children is more in rural and slum areas. In these areas also, girls are more reported for the condition. It is most reported at 11–13 years of age. The condition is more common in the joint families, specifically in rural area. Education and birth order do not have any significance to the reporting of psychosomatic condition.