title: Detection of depression in primary care: comparison of two self-administered scales.
abstract: Two self-rated questionnaires, SELFCARE (D) and Hospital Anxiety Depression (HAD) Scale, were compared in relation to their efficacy in detecting depression in 72 elderly patients attending general practitioners at a health centre in Liverpool, England. The sensitivity, specificity and overall misclassification rates of both the scales were assessed against a diagnosis arrived at by using a standardized interview schedule, Geriatric Mental State (community version), and a computerized diagnostic scheme, AGECAT. In this preliminary study, SELFCARE (D) was found to be superior to HAD as a screening instrument for depression in the elderly population in primary care.
authors.affiliation: Coventry Healthcare NHS Trust, UK.
authors.forename: A K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Upadhyaya
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Stanley
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015982:Bias; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000517:prevention & control; D003936:Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000592:standards*; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000592:standards*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity