[Point prevalence of depression in the Cracow population of 13 year old students in 1984 and 2001].

Unlabelled: Results of scarce epidemiological studies on depression in adolescents are diverse and dependent of survey methodology as well as on the theoretical approach of research. Those studies where the methods are comparable show that depression prevalence depends on the macrosocial situation and the adolescence stage.
Aim: The study aimed to assess changes in depression prevalence in mid-adolescents between 1984 and 2001. A presumption was made that the social situation in Poland had changed in the last 17 years.
Method: In 2001 a representative sample of school attending 13 y.o. adolescents was screened with KID-IO "B1". The results were compared with those of a similar survey, using the same method, carried out in 1984.
Results: Point prevalence index in 2001 appeared to be lower than in the survey in 1984 (24.6% versus 31.6%). This resulted exclusively from a significant decrease in depression among girls (26.8% versus 42.2%).
Conclusion: The obtained data allows for an interpretation of the findings as being a result of macrosocial changes. Other hypotheses e.g. influence of the adolescence timing and course requires a longitudinal prospective study.