Screening for depression in adolescents: validity of the patient health questionnaire in pediatric care.

BACKGROUND: This study examines the criterion validity of the Patient Health Questionnaire 9-item (PHQ-9) and 2-item (PHQ-2) version as a depression-screening instrument for adolescents. METHODS: Three hundred twenty-two adolescents aged 13-16 were recruited from pediatric hospitals. Criterion validity of the PHQ-9 and PHQ-2 was assessed against diagnoses of any depressive disorder provided by a structured diagnostic interview. Areas under the receiver operating characteristics curve (AUCs) and sensitivities and specificities at optimal cutoff points were computed for both versions of the PHQ. Besides the dimensional algorithm, a categorical algorithm was applied for the PHQ-9. Validity measures of both scoring procedures of the PHQ-9 as well as PHQ-2 were compared statistically. In addition, unaided clinical depression diagnoses by the attending pediatricians were evaluated. RESULTS: Using the dimensional algorithm, the AUCof the PHQ-9 (93.2%) was significantly higher than that of the PHQ-2 (87.2%). At optimal cutoffs, there was no significant difference in sensitivity (PHQ-9: 90.0%, PHQ-2: 85.0%), but in specificity (PHQ-9: 86.5%, PHQ-2: 79.4%). Although the categorical algorithm of the PHQ-9 was most specific (94.7%), sensitivity was just above chance (52.5%). The unaided clinical diagnoses yielded a sensitivity of 12.5% and a specificity of 96.0%. CONCLUSIONS: The dimensional algorithm of the PHQ-9 demonstrated high criterion validity, whereas the categorical algorithm should not be applied due to its low sensitivity. Even though the PHQ-2 performed well, validity of the PHQ-9 was still superior. Hence, the PHQ-9 can be recommended as depression screener for adolescents to improve recognition rates in pediatric care.

[Early detection of major depression in paediatric care: validity of the beck depression inventory-second edition (BDI-II) and the beck depression inventory-fast screen for medical patients (BDI-FS)]. / Früherkennung von Depressionen in der Pädiatrie: Kriteriumsvalidität des Beck Depressions-Inventar Revison (BDI-II) und des Beck Depressions-Inventar-Fast Screen for Medical Patients (BDI-FS).

This study investigates the ability of the Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition (BDI-II) and the Beck Depression Inventory-Fast Screen for Medical Patients (BDI-FS) to discriminate between depressed and non-depressed youths. 5.7% of 314 adolescents, aged 13-16 years, from paediatric and paediatric surgery clinics were suffering from a Major Depression according to the diagnostic interview Kinder-DIPS. By means of this gold standard Receiver Operating Characteristic curves, the Area Under the Curve (AUC) and the optimal cut-offs were calculated. The validity of BDI-II was excellent (AUC=0.93, sensitivity=0.86 and specificity=0.93 at the optimal cut-off ≥19). The validity of BDI-FS did not differ significantly from BDI-II (AUC=0.92, sensitivity=0.81, specificity=0.90). For the first time we present cut-offs for the German version of BDI-II and the 7-item BDI-FS that are suitable for the early detection of depressed adolescents in paediatric care.

[Depression screening in pediatric patients - a comparison of the concurrent validity of the German version of the Children's Depression Inventory, the German Depression Test for Children, and the new Children's Depression Screener]. / Depressions-Screening bei pädiatrischen Patienten Ein Vergleich der konkurrenten Validitat des Depressions-inventars fur Kinder und Jugendliche, des Depressionstests fur Kinder und des Children's Depression Screeners.

OBJECTIVE: We compared the concurrent validity of several tests for screening depression in pediatric care with respect to ICD-10 depression diagnoses in medically ill children: the German version of the Children's Depression Inventory (Depressionsinventar für Kinder und Jugendliche, DIKJ), the scale Dysphoria of the Depression Test for Children (Depressionstest für Kinder, DTK), and the Children's Depression Screener (ChilD-S). METHOD: Data of 9- to 12-year-old patients (N = 228) were analyzed with receiver operating characteristics. Validity measures like area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity (SE), and specificity (SP) were calculated for each instrument and subsequently compared. ICD-10 depression diagnoses according to a structured clinical interview served as the gold standard. RESULTS: The concurrent validity was high for the 26-item DIKJ (AUC = 92.6 %), satisfactory for the 25-item scale Dysphoria (AUC = 86.2 %), and very high for the 8-item ChilD-S (AUC = 97.5 %); the ChilD-S was significantly superior to the DIKJ. According to the Youden-Index the following cutoff scores are recommended: DIKJ ≥ 12 (SE = 91.7 %, SP = 81.9 %), scale Dysphoria ≥ 10 (SE = 75.0 %, SP = 89.8 %) and ChilD-S ≥ 10 (SE = 100 %, SP = 86.6 %). CONCLUSIONS: DIKJ and ChilD-S showed excellent concurrent validity for depression screening in pediatric patients, while the scale Dysphoria achieved lower values. For implementation in time-limited pediatric settings, the economic ChilD-S is the preferred instrument.

Depression in pediatric care: is the WHO-Five Well-Being Index a valid screening instrument for children and adolescents?

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the criterion validity of the WHO-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5) in screening for depression in pediatric care. METHOD: A total of 446 children aged 9 to 12 and 324 adolescents aged 13 to 16, recruited from pediatric hospitals, completed the WHO-5 and a structured diagnostic interview serving as the gold standard. Diagnoses of depressive disorder included major depression and minor depression. Criterion validity was analyzed using the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC). Sensitivity and specificity were computed for optimal cutoffs. Additionally, unaided clinical diagnoses of depression made by the attending pediatricians were assessed. RESULTS: Diagnoses of depressive disorder were established for 3.6% of children and 11.7% of adolescents. AUCs were .88 for the child and .87 for the adolescent sample. A cutoff score of 10 for children maximized sensitivity (.75) and specificity (.92). For the adolescent sample, decreasing the cutoff score to 9 yielded optimal sensitivity (.74) and specificity (.89). Sensitivity of the unaided clinical diagnosis of depression was .09, while specificity was .96. CONCLUSIONS: The WHO-5 demonstrated good diagnostic accuracy for both age groups. Further evidence is needed to support the feasibility of the WHO-5 as a depression screening instrument used in pediatric care.

Children's Depression Screener (ChilD-S): development and validation of a depression screening instrument for children in pediatric care.

The aim of the present study was to develop and validate the Children's Depression Screener (ChilD-S) for use in pediatric care. In two pediatric samples, children aged 9-12 (N(I) = 200; N(II) = 246) completed an explorative item pool (subsample I) and a revised item pool (subsample II). Diagnostic accuracy of each of the 22 items from the revised pool was evaluated in order to select the best items for the brief instrument ChilD-S. Areas under the curve (AUCs) of the revised item pool and the ChilD-S were compared. A diagnostic interview, the Kinder-DIPS, served as gold standard. For the purpose of screening for depressive disorders in children, the eight-item ChilD-S (AUC = 0.97) performed just as well as the revised 22-item pool (AUC = 0.94). For the ChilD-S the optimal cut-off point of ≥11 yielded a sensitivity of 0.91 and a specificity of 0.89. The ChilD-S shows high potential for depression screening of children in pediatric care.

Screening for depression in adolescent paediatric patients: validity of the new Depression Screener for Teenagers (DesTeen).

BACKGROUND: Depression in adolescents is often hard to detect. In many cases paediatricians are the first point of contact. In order to increase recognition rates, screening instruments may be a helpful support for health care professionals. However, there is a lack of valid and economical screening instruments for primary care patients. Thus, the aim of the study was the development of the new Depression Screener for Teenagers (DesTeen) and its validation in a paediatric sample. METHOD: 326 patients between 13 and 16 years old completed the DesTeen and a diagnostic interview, serving as gold standard. Prevalence rate for any depressive disorder (minor depression, major depression and dysthymia) was 12.6%. Psychometric properties were calculated. For validity measures, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) for any depressive disorder and the diagnostic subgroups was computed. RESULTS: DesTeen showed a high reliability (Cronbach's α=.87) and a high validity (AUC=.91). For the diagnostic subgroups AUC values did not significantly differ from overall accuracy of any depressive disorder (major depression: AUC=.95, p=.179; dysthymia: AUC=.88, p=.605; minor depression: AUC=.87, p=.327). The optimal cut-off point for any depressive disorder according to the Youden-Index yielded a sensitivity of .90 and a specificity of .80. An abbreviated 5-item version of DesTeen showed no loss in validity (AUC=.90, p=.695). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, DesTeen can be regarded as a valid screening instrument for adolescent paediatric patients. For practical use, the 5-item version is even more promising. A replication of these results is essential.