Screening test for depression in adolescents gets green signal
November 1st, 2010 - 2:45 pm ICT by ANIWashington, Nov 01 (ANI): Screening depression in adolescents would now get easier-thanks to a new test that has been approved by researchers.
University of Washington researchers, Seattle Children’s, and Group Health Health report has suggested that the PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9 item) is a good screening test for major depression in adolescents.
Led by Laura P. Richardson, the team tested the PHQ-9 as a screening tool for depression in 442 teenage patients, age 13-17, at Group Health
The test is brief, available free of charge, easy to score and understand, and proven to find major depression (meeting DSM-IV criteria) in adults.
“This is important not only because depression is relatively common among adolescents, but also because we have effective treatment for them.
“Primary care clinicians are advised to screen teens for depression and they need a convenient tool like this,” said Richardson.
The team compared the PHQ-9 to the more labour-intensive gold standard, an independent structured mental health interview (the Child Diagnostic Interview Schedule, DISC-IV).
They found the best-cut point for maximizing the PHQ-9 screening test’s sensitivity without losing specificity is higher among teens than in adults.
But its sensitivity (89.5 percent) and specificity (77.5 percent) in teens are similar to those in adults.
This study was published in the journal Pediatrics. (ANI)
- Chronic kidney disease patients with depression at complications risk - May 20, 2010
- Obese people 'can suffer from social anxiety disorder' - Apr 14, 2011
- Eating disorders prevalent among adolescents: US study - Mar 08, 2011
- Why teens are less sensitive to alcohol than adults - Dec 05, 2010
- 1 in 5 US preschoolers display mental health issues when starting kindergarten - Jul 09, 2010
- Darth Vader 'Dark Side' Diagnosis: Borderline Personality! - Jun 09, 2010
- Texting may increase medication compliance in teen diabetics - Jul 31, 2010
- Low socioeconomic status 'ups depression risk in rheumatoid arthritis patients' - Jan 27, 2011
- Heavy drinking linked to lower coronary heart disease risk - Apr 28, 2011
- Scientists propose new way to classify personality disorders - Oct 13, 2010
- Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder linked to sleep problems in teens - May 01, 2009
- Drinking alcohol after age 75 linked to lower risk of dementia - Mar 08, 2011
- Darth Vader's psychology revealed - Jun 06, 2010
- Severely obese teens 'no more likely to be depressed' - Apr 22, 2011
- Adolescence sex comes with health risks later - Nov 16, 2011
Tags: care clinicians, depression in adolescents, diagnostic interview, dsm iv criteria, gold standard, group health, health health, health questionnaire, health report, interview schedule, journal pediatrics, major depression, new test, patient health, phq 9, screening test, screening tool, seattle children, specificity, washington researchers