Abstract
BackgroundMental distress is an important public health problem and becoming a common health problem among university students. This systematic review and meta-analysis will provide the pooled prevalence of mental distress and identify determinant factors associated with mental distress among university students in Ethiopia.MethodA systematic search of PubMed, EMBASE, and PsycINFO databases will be conducted. In addition, we will search grey literature resources such as a database/website of dissertations and theses, WHO websites, and websites of professional bodies. Reference lists of the selected articles will also be searched for additional articles. All observational studies reporting the prevalence of mental distress and/or associated factors among university students in Ethiopia will be included. Pooled prevalence with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) will be calculated using random-effects and quality-effects models. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses will be performed. Heterogeneity between studies and evidence of publication bias will also be assessed.DiscussionThe proposed systematic review and meta-analysis will provide a pooled prevalence of mental distress and associated factors to assist policy-makers and programme managers in developing evidence-based mental health promotion and prevention programmes in university/college settings.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42017067223
Highlights
DiscussionThe proposed systematic review and meta-analysis will provide a pooled prevalence of mental distress and associated factors to assist policy-makers and programme managers in developing evidence-based mental health promotion and prevention programmes in university/college settings
Mental distress is an important public health problem and becoming a common health problem among university students
The proposed systematic review and meta-analysis will provide a pooled prevalence of mental distress and associated factors to assist policy-makers and programme managers in developing evidence-based mental health promotion and prevention programmes in university/college settings
Summary
This will be the first systematic review and meta-analysis that will determine the pooled prevalence of mental distress among university students in Ethiopia. It will identify factors associated with mental distress among students. By identifying the risk and protective factors of mental distress, the findings may help in developing evidence-based mental health promotion and diseases prevention programmes targeting university students. Additional file 1: PRISMA-P (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis Protocols) 2015 checklist: recommended items to address in a systematic review protocol. Abbreviations 95% CI: 95% confidence interval; DALYs: Disability-adjusted life years; MeSH: Medical Subject Headings; PRISMA-P: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis; WHO: World Health Organization
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