[The Depression Recognition Scale: and aid in the diagnosis of depression in family practice]

OBJECTIVE: To assess the reliability, positive predictive value and concurrent validity of a brief and simple interview to diagnose major depression in general practice, the Depression recognition scale (DRS). DESIGN: Descriptive. SETTING: University of Leiden, the Netherlands. METHODS: The DRS was compared with a semi-structured psychiatric interview to assess major depression and with the depression items of the Symptom checklist-90 (SCL-90), a self-rating scale for perceived symptoms. RESULTS: The study consisted of 233 subsequent patients of II general practices who were screened for an interview; 95 patients were actually interviewed, 15 of these patients had a major depression (15/233; 6{\%}). The DRS was also compared with the SCL-90 among 428 other patients. The validity was 0.73 and 0.66 and the internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.63 and 0.75, respectively. If the DRS were used only for patients the general practitioner considers mildly depressed (43/233 = 18{\%}), few cases of major depression would be missed (2/15). CONCLUSION: The DRS appears a practical, reliable and valid diagnostic tool