title: Somatic complaints in primary care: further examining the validity of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15).
abstract: The authors examined the reliability and validity of the PHQ-15, a measure of current somatic complaints. An index of medically unexplained symptoms was used as a key criterion. Data were utilized from medical outpatients enrolled in a treatment study for moderate-to-severe somatization (N=172). Approximately 68% of the sample was Hispanic. Results showed that the PHQ-15 was moderately related to a history of medically unexplained symptoms among non-Hispanic participants. Results indicated ethnic differences on the validity profile of the PHQ-15 showing that the criterion variables were less predictive of the PHQ-15 among Hispanics than among non-Hispanics. Also, among the Hispanic group, the PHQ-15 was less related to medically unexplained symptoms and more to psychiatric distress. General support was provided for using the PHQ-15 with clinical samples composed of non-Hispanics. Also, the PHQ-15 appears to measure medically unexplained symptoms, psychiatric distress, and physical functioning. Further study is recommended to better evaluate ethnic variations and other types of validity for the PHQ-15.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, 671 Hoes Lane D306, Piscataway, NJ 08854-5635, USA. interial@umdnj.edu
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Interian
authors.forename: Lesley A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Gara
authors.forename: Javier I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Escobar
authors.forename: Angélica M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Díaz-Martínez
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards