Sloan, Mikayla2024-07-092024-07-092022https://hdl.handle.net/2440/141571This item is only available electronically.Major depressive disorder and dysthymia are common mental disorders that are prevalent across the world and significantly contribute to disease burden. The Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) has identified depressive disorders as a significant contributor of non- fatal health loss in Australia and global populations previously. An updated review is critically important to assess the current prevalence and burden of depressive disorders in Australia and examine how this has changed over time, so that policy can be informed by this data. The GBD 2019 was used to examine the prevalence and burden of depressive disorders from 1990 to 2019 by age, sex, year, location and sociodemographic index. Non-fatal burden was measured by years lived with disability and total burden was measured by disability- adjusted life years. The burden of depressive disorders attributable to behavioural risk factors was estimated by age, sex and year in Australia. 95% uncertainty intervals were reported around all estimates. The findings show that among mental disorders, depressive disorders were the highest leading cause of non-fatal burden in Australia in 2019, accounting for 6.9% of total years lived with disability. Between 1990 and 2019, there was no significant change in the age-standardised rate of prevalent cases (0.36%) and years lived with disability (-0.095%) of depressive disorders in Australia. YLDs attributable to intimate partner violence, bullying victimisation and childhood sexual abuse were highest among young adults. This thesis is beneficial to inform national mental health initiatives and understand where more investment into psychological services is necessary in Australia.Honours; PsychologyThesis