Intersex adolescents seeking help for their depression: the case study of SPARX in New Zealandd.
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Date
2021-08
Open Access Location
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
SAGE Publications on behalf of The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists
Rights
CC BY 4.0
Abstract
Objective:
SPARX is a computerized cognitive behavioral therapy self-help program for adolescent depression that is freely available in New Zealand. At registration, users identify themselves as either male, female, intersex, or transgender. We aimed to describe the mental health of adolescent intersex users.
Method:
A secondary analysis of SPARX usage data over 5 years.
Results:
Of the 8922 adolescents users, 0.6% (n = 50) identified as intersex. Based on Patient Health Questionnaire 9 – modified for Adolescents (PHQ-A) results, 78.3% of intersex users had high levels of depression and/or self-harm and suicidal ideation. The mean PHQ-A scores for intersex users were significantly higher than for males and females (p < .001). As only three intersex users completed SPARX Level 4 or more (of the seven-level program), we were unable to meaningfully investigate any reductions in their depressive symptoms over time.
Conclusions:
There is a dearth of empirical data on the mental health of intersex adolescents. These results suggest that intersex adolescents seeking help from an online resource have high mental health needs compared with other young people, possibly because they defer seeking help.
Description
Keywords
adolescent, depression, diverse sex development, intersex, variations of sex characteristics, Adolescent, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Depression, Female, Humans, Male, Mental Health, New Zealand, Suicidal Ideation
Citation
Lucassen MFG, Perry Y, Frampton C, Fleming T, Merry SN, Shepherd M, Stasiak K. (2021). Intersex adolescents seeking help for their depression: the case study of SPARX in New Zealand.. Australas Psychiatry. 29. 4. (pp. 450-453).