Sarcouncil Journal of Medical Sciences

Abstract: Introduction- Aggressive behaviour in psychiatry ward is fairly common and often threatens the safety of patient, relatives and staff. It determines the duration of hospitalization, burden on the caregivers, outcome and prognosis of illness and increases the usage of coercive measures like seclusion and restraint. Aim-To study the prevalence of aggression in various psychiatric disorders and correlation of socio-demographic factors with the severity of aggression. Method-A retrospective record-based study design in the psychiatry indoor setting was used on 210 consecutive patients out of which 100 having aggression were selected. The severity of aggression was measured and graded by using Staff Observation Aggression Scale- Revised Emergency (SOAS-RE). Results- 47.6% of patients had aggression. Patients ≤35 years, married had more severe aggression (p value- 0.018 and 0.049 respectively). 60% of schizophrenia, 52.7% of bipolar, 39.13% of substance withdrawal, 85.71% of brief psychotic, 100% of Intellectual disability disorder and 40% of schizoaffective patients admitted had aggression. Conclusion- This study concluded that aggression is more common in males but severity is approximately equal in both the genders. Aggression was more commonly seen in patients who were not on any pharmacotherapy. Chemical restrain was required for every aggressive patient and physical restraint was required for patients with severe SOAS-RE score. Comorbid substance use was found to be an aggravating factor