title: Diagnostic performance of the CBCL-Attention Problem Scale as a screening measure in a sample of Brazilian children with ADHD.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Attention Problem Scale of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL-APS) for the screening of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in a sample of Brazilian children and adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  The CBCL-APS was given to 763 children and adolescents. Child psychiatrists using DSM-IV criteria confirmed the clinical diagnoses. Diagnostic performance was evaluated through Receiver-Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Only moderate areas under the curve (AUC) were found for the general sample (AUC = 0.79; 95% CI = 0.76-0.82), and for the subsample of referred patients (AUC = 0.78; 95% CI = 0.74-0.82). The subsample of patients with ADHD of the combined type presented the largest AUC (AUC = 0.85; 95% CI = 0.82-0.88).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings concur with previous studies of different cultures demonstrating adequate diagnostic performance of the CBCL-APS for the screening of ADHD, especially of the combined type.
authors.affiliation: ADHD outpatient program at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Federal University of Rio Grande du Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Lampert
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Polanczyk
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tramontina
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Mardini
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Rohde
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology; D001938:Brazil; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012372:ROC Curve; D012720:Severity of Illness Index