title: Assessing depressive symptoms in five psychiatric populations: a validation study.
abstract: Data from five psychiatric populations and a community sample are presented on the CES-D, 20-item self-report depression symptom scale developed by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies. Results show that the scale is a sensitive tool for detecting depressive symptoms and change in symptoms over time in psychiatric populations, and that it agrees quite well with more lengthy self-report scales used in clinical studies and with clinician interview ratings. Although a symptom scale cannot differentiate between diagnositc groups, the CES-D has demonstrated its validity as a screening tool for detecting depressive symptoms in psychiatric populations.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis; D012647:Self-Assessment; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis