Validity of the self reporting questionnaire-20 in epidemiological studies with older adults: results from the Sao Paulo Ageing & Health Study.
BACKGROUND
This study examined the validity of the self-reporting questionnaire (SRQ-20) in a population-based survey with older adults in Sao Paulo, Brazil.


METHODS
The study sample consisted of 2,008 individuals aged 65 years or more who were living in an economically disadvantaged area of the city. The geriatric mental state (GMS) was used as the gold standard for the assessment of common mental disorders (CMD).


RESULTS
The optimal SRQ-20 threshold for case definition was 4/5 (sensitivity = 76.1%, specificity = 74.6%, area under ROC curve = 0.82). Women, older participants and those with lower income were more likely to be misclassified by the questionnaire. The inclusion of older persons with dementia or psychosis did not change the ability of the SRQ-20 to identify cases of CMD.


CONCLUSIONS
The SRQ-20 may be a useful instrument to be used in large epidemiological studies in resource-poor settings for the identification of cases of depression and anxiety in later life. The performance of the SRQ-20 among older adults was similar to that observed with the adult population in Brazil.
Scazufca
Marcia
M
Dept. of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil. scazufca@usp.br
Menezes
Paulo R
PR
Vallada
Homero
H
Araya
Ricardo
R
D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011203:Poverty; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*
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