Indicators of depression in elderly and different screening methods

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective To determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms among elderly and correlate the agreement between the screening methods used. Methods A cross-section study of 137 elderly attending the Programa Vivendo a Terceira Idade [Living for the Elderly Program]. Depressive symptoms were screened by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale, by Yesavage. Cohen´s kappa analyzed the degree of agreement of these scales. Results The prevalence of depressive symptoms screened by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 was 62.8% and, by the Geriatric Depression Scale, 52.6%. The Spearman correlation between the results of scales obtained rho=0.387, p<0.000. The Kappa reliability coefficient was 0.41 and significance level of p<0.001. The screening methods showed sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 44%. Conclusion Both scales showed moderate agreement and were useful for detecting a relevant prevalence of the target outcome of depression among the elderly.