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Validation of the patient health questionnaire-9 for major depressive disorder in the occupational health setting
Volker,D. Zijlstra-Vlasveld,M.C. Brouwers,E.P M. Homans,W.A. Emons,W.H.M. van der Feltz-Cornelis,C.M.
Volker,D.
Zijlstra-Vlasveld,M.C.
Brouwers,E.P M.
Homans,W.A.
Emons,W.H.M.
van der Feltz-Cornelis,C.M.
Abstract
Purpose Because of the increased risk of long-term sickness leave for employees with a major depressive disorder (MDD), it is important for occupational health professionals to recognize depression in a timely manner. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) has proven to be a reliable and valid instrument for screening MDD, but has not been validated in the occupational health setting. The aim of this study was to validate the PHQ-9 for MDD within a population of employees on sickness leave by using the MINI-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) as a gold standard. Methods Participants were recruited in collaboration with the occupational health service. The study sample consisted of 170 employees on sickness leave between 4 and 26 weeks who completed the PHQ-9 and were evaluated with the MINI by telephone. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, efficiency and 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CIs) were calculated for all possible cut-off values. A receiver operator characteristics (ROC) analysis was computed for PHQ-9 score versus the MINI. Results The optimal cut-off value of the PHQ-9 was 10. This resulted in a sensitivity of 86.1 % [95 % CI (69.7–94.8)] and a specificity of 78.4 % [95 % CI (70.2–84.8)]. Based on the ROC analysis, the area under the curve for the PHQ-9 was 0.90 [SE = 0.02; 95 % CI (0.85–0.94)]. Conclusion The PHQ-9 shows good sensitivity and specificity as a screener for MDD within a population of employees on sickness leave.
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2016
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Volker, D, Zijlstra-Vlasveld, M C, Brouwers, E P M, Homans, W A, Emons, W H M & van der Feltz-Cornelis, C M 2016, 'Validation of the patient health questionnaire-9 for major depressive disorder in the occupational health setting', Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 237-244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-015-9607-0