Screening and diagnosing depression in women visiting GPs' drop in clinic in Primary Health Care

• Published in: BMC family practice 2008-06, Vol.9 (1), p.34-34, Article 34
• Main Authors: Stromberg, Ranja, Wernering, Estera, Aberg-Wistedt, Anna, Furhoff, Anna-Karin, Johansson, Sven-Erik, Backlund, Lars G
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Ambulatory Care; Analysis; Depression - diagnosis; Depression - epidemiology; Depression, Mental; Depressive Disorder - classification; Depressive Disorder - diagnosis; Depressive Disorder - epidemiology; Diagnosis; Family Practice; Female; Humans; Mass Screening - methods; Medical screening; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Methods; Middle Aged; Personality Inventory; Prevalence; Prevention; Primary Health Care; Psychological aspects; Severity of Illness Index; Sweden - epidemiology; Women
• ISSN: 1471-2296; 1471-2296
• DOI: 10.1186/1471-2296-9-34

Only half of all depressions are diagnosed in Primary Health Care (PHC). Depression can remain undetected for a long time and entail high costs for care and low quality of life for the individuals. Drop in clinic is a common form of organizing health care; however the visits are short and focus on solving the most urgent problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and severity of depression among women visiting the GPs' drop in clinic and to identify possible clues for depression among women. The two-stage screening method with "high risk feedback" was used. Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI) was used to screen 155 women visiting two GPs' drop in clinic. Women who screened positive (BDI score > or =10) were invited by the GP to a repeat visit. Major depression (MDD) was diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria and the severity was assessed with Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Women with BDI score