The most frequent manifestations of mental suffering in the community

Abstract

A panorama is presented of the most frequent mental and behavioral disorders in the population of São Paulo, the state of São Paulo and in the Brazilian population. The database used includes mortality and morbidity from 2002. Among the number of deaths, mental and behavioral disorders due to the use of psychoactive substances are the most frequent causes (F10-F19), with 77.26% of deaths in Brazil; 59.11% in the State and 53.38% in the city of São Paulo. Regarding hospitalizations, the predominant mental disorders are grouped in Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delirious disorders (F20-F29), with 52.72%, 43.77% and 44.65% from the total of mental disorders, respectively in Brazil, State and City of São Paulo; followed by the same group responsible for deaths. These data only provide a dimension of the scenario, because only well conducted research can evidence the prevalence. Brazil lacks studies of such nature and secondary data on mortality and morbidity are an alternative, functioning as a guide for the situation and for the implementation of public policies.