Prevalence of depression and anxiety among university students during COVID-19 in Bangladesh: A cross sectional study

Introduction: The COVID-19 outbreak has become a challenging crisis for public health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the indefinite closure of educational institutions in Bangladesh has a severe impact on the mental health of students. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate factors that might have considerable influence on the mental health of students during quarantine in Bangladesh though they did not explore in previous studies on mental health status during the pandemic. Methodology: A standardized questionnaire was generated using PH9 and GAD7 to measure depression and anxiety levels. A total of 203 responses were collected from university students of Bangladesh through social media. Results: Descriptive statistics found that 37% of the students experienced moderate to severe anxiety while 54% faced moderate to severe depression. Ordinal Logistic Regression analysis found that anxiety is significantly related to gender, students’ current affiliation status in university (e.g., sophomore, masters), and time spent on watching TV while depression was related to family member’s contact with Covid-19, performing multiple activities as hobbies, and spending time in reading and writing. Conclusions: This study adds valuable findings in the existing literature, and it will help Students, university authorities, and government can take productive steps to tackle mental health issues