7 Tools to Identify Depression

The two-question screen was found to be a valid and effective means of identifying subjects with major depression, with a specificity of 96% and a specificity of 57%. A “no” response to both questions made depression highly unlikely. The test results were similar across all ages. However, a limitation of this study was that few of the patients were women.

Conclusion

Depression is a condition that frequently co-occurs in patients with chronic health conditions, including OA and RA. Health professionals working with these patients should include screening for depression so as to improve treatment adherence, patient quality of life and clinical outcomes, including pain, fatigue and poor sleep. Effective tools are available, and they are brief enough to be used in a busy medical practice (see Table 4). In fact, a two-question screen is as effective as longer tools in identifying patients with depression.

Nancy Sharby, PT, DPT, MS, is associate clinical professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Northeastern University, in Boston, Mass.

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