Patient health questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15) to distinguish bipolar II disorder from major depressive disorder

• Published in: Psychiatry research 2020-08, Vol.290, p.113026-113026, Article 113026
• Main Authors: Sun, Da-Liang, Liu, Qing-He, Li, Mei-Juan, Yang, Yuan, Zhang, Ran, Li, Min, Xiang, Si-Ying, Chen, Jian-Hua
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Bipolar disorder; Bipolar Disorder - diagnosis; Bipolar Disorder - psychology; Depressive Disorder, Major - diagnosis; Depressive Disorder, Major - psychology; Female; Humans; Major depressive disorder; Male; Middle Aged; Patient Health Questionnaire - standards; Patient health questionnaire-15; Psychometrics; Sensitivity and Specificity; Somatoform Disorders - diagnosis; Somatoform Disorders - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 0165-1781; 1872-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113026

•Differences in the severity of somatic symptoms could differentiate bipolar II disorder and major depressive disorder.•Patients with bipolar II disorder depression has more somatic symptoms than major depressive disorder.•Patient Health Questionaire-15 (PHQ-15) might be used to identify bipolar II disorder and major depressive disorder. A sequential-recruited clinical trial has been conducted to assess capacity of Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15) in distinguishing bipolar II disorder from major depressive disorder. A total of 73 patients (49 BD-II depression patients) filled sociodemographic characteristics, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Questionnaire (GAD-7), and PHQ-15. Sum score of PHQ-15 showed statistically significant difference in the two groups (t-test, P = 0.027). The area under the curve was 0.663 (P = 0.025), and the specificity was 0.75 at sum score of 13. Patients with BD-II depression has more somatic symptoms than MDD, and PHQ-15 might be used for identification.