Symptoms of Depression among Outpatients with Acute Respiratory Infection in Metropolitan Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, Nigeria

Background The novel SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has redefined global health and response to Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI). The outbreak of a cluster of influenza-like illnesses in Wuhan, China, has morphed into a pandemic in the last quarter of 2019, stretching from South East Asia to Europe, The Americas, Africa, and the Australian subcontinent. Materials and Methods We shall utilize a cross-sectional, observational design to investigate the prevalence of symptoms of depression among outpatients with ARI and describe the characteristics of outpatients with ARI in Kaduna State. Results The prevalence of symptoms of depression was 19.6% for respondents with symptoms of ARI, and 14.4%, for those without symptoms of ARI. On no risk of depression, we had a higher proportion of the respondents without symptoms of ARI (86%) than those with symptoms of depression (80%) (M=318.4, SD=29.62 case, and M=344.0, SD=14.2 control, r=0.88, CI=13.5 to 6.5, P=0.000952). Likewise, in the category with mild risk of depression, respondents without symptoms of ARI were fewer (10%) than those with symptoms of depression (15%) (M=58.4, SD=26.0 case, and M=42.1, SD=12.7 control, r=0.86, CI=11.8 to 5.8, P=0.0136. There was no significant difference between respondents with symptoms of ARI and without symptoms of ARI in the categories of moderate (M=13.6, SD=5.1 case, and M=11.6, SD=4.6 control, r=0.87, CI=2.3 to 2.1, P=0.178) and high (M=5.6, SD=2.5 case, and M=4.4, SD=3.2 control, r=0.61, CI=1.2 to 1.5, P=0.174) risk of depression. Conclusion Symptoms of depression were commoner among respondents who presented with symptoms of Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) at the Outpatient Department (OPD). However, further explanatory research is needed to establish causality. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Clinical Trial NA ### Funding Statement The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: The researcher sought and obtained ethical approval (NHREC/17/03/2018) from the Kaduna State Ministry of Health—only respondents who willingly gave written informed consent after a clear protocol explanation participated in the study. I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable. Yes data available on request to the corresponding author * ARI : Acute Respiratory Infections BDI : Beck’s Depression Inventory CEPI : Epidemic Preparedness and Innovation CHEW : Community Health Environmental Worker CHO : Community Health Officer COVAX : Coalition for COVID-19 vaccine led by WHO DALY : Disability Adjusted Life Year DSM-IV : Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV for Mental Health LGA : Local Government Area LMIC : Low and Middle-Income Countries LRTI : Lower Respiratory Tract Infection NLR : Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio NPI : Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions PCR : Polymerase Chain Reaction PHC : Primary Health Care PHEIC : Public Health Emergency of International Concern PPE : Personal Protective Equipment PPS : Proportional Probability Size RDT : Rapid Diagnostic Test RSV : Respiratory Syncytial Virus RTI : Respiratory Tract Infection RT-PCR : Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction SARS-CoV-2 : Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 SPSS : Statistical Package for Social Sciences UNICEF : United Nations Children Funds URTI : Upper Respiratory Tract Infection WHO : World Health Organization