Citation

Khan SA, Chauhan VS, Timothy A, Kalpana S, Khanam S. Ind. Psychiatry J. 2016; 25(2): 216-221.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, VKS University, Patna, Bihar, India.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Association of Industrial Psychiatry of India)

DOI

10.4103/ipj.ipj_15_17

PMID

28659703

PMCID

PMC5479097

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Hajj pilgrimage, in Saudi Arabia, is one of the world's largest religious mass gatherings. We have similar mass gathering scenarios in India such as the Amarnath Yatra and Kumbh. A unique combination of physical, physiological, and psychological factors makes this pilgrimage a very stressful milieu. We studied the emergence of psychopathology and its determinants, in this adverse environment in mass gathering situation, in Indian pilgrims on Hajj 2016.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a descriptive study analyzing the mental morbidity in 1.36 lakh Indian pilgrims during Hajj 2016, using SPSS software version 19.

RESULTS: Totally 182 patients reported psychological problems. Twenty-two patients (12%) required admission. Twelve (6.8%) pilgrims reported a past history of a mental illness. One hundred and sixty-five (93.2%) patients never had any mental symptoms earlier in life. The most common illnesses seen were stress related (45.7%) followed by psychosis (9.8%), insomnia (7.3%), and mood disorders (5.6%). The most common symptoms recorded were apprehension (45%), sleep (55%), anxiety (41%), and fear of being lost (27%). Psychotropics were prescribed for 46% of pilgrims. All patients completed their Hajj successfully and returned to India.

CONCLUSIONS: Cumulative stress causes full spectrum of mental decompensation, and prompt healing is aided by simple nonpharmacological measures including social support and counseling in compatible sociolinguistic milieu.

Language: en

Keywords

Hajj 2016; mass gathering; mental morbidity; stress