Prevalence of depression in Europe using two different PHQ-8 scoring methods
Introduction The prevalence of depression based on the Patient Health Questionnaire-8 (PHQ-8) may vary depending on the scoring method. Objectives 1) To describe the prevalence of depression in Europe using two PHQ-8 scoring methods. 2) To identify the countries with the highest prevalence accordi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge University Press
2022-06-01
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| Series: | European Psychiatry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0924933822007635/type/journal_article |
| Summary: | Introduction
The prevalence of depression based on the Patient Health Questionnaire-8 (PHQ-8) may vary depending on the scoring method.
Objectives
1) To describe the prevalence of depression in Europe using two PHQ-8 scoring methods. 2) To identify the countries with the highest prevalence according to each method.
Methods
Data from 27 countries included in the European Health Survey (EHIS-2) for the year 2014/2015 were used (n=258,888). All participants who completed the PHQ-8 were included. The prevalence of depression and its 95% Confidence Interval (95%CI) were calculated overall for the whole of Europe and for each country using a PHQ-8≥10 cut-off point and the PHQ-8 algorithm scoring method. Weights derived from the complex sample design were considered for their calculation.
Results
The overall prevalence of depression for all Europe was lower using the PHQ-8>=10 cut-off point (6.38%, 95%CI 6.24-6.52) than the PHQ-8 algorithm (7.01%, 95%CI, 6.86-7.16). Using the PHQ-8≥10 cut-off point, the highest prevalence was observed in Iceland (10.33%, 95%CI, 9.33-11.32), Luxembourg (9.74%, 95%CI, 8.76-10.72) and Germany (9.24%, 95%CI, 8.82-9.66). Using the PHQ-8 algorithm the highest rates were observed in Hungary (10.99%, 95%CI,10.14-11.84), Portugal (10.63%, 95%CI, 9.96-11.29) and Iceland (9.80%, 95%CI, 8.77-10.83).
Conclusions
There is variability in the prevalence of depression rates in Europe according to the PHQ-8 scoring method. These findings suggest the necessity of identify the method of choice for each country comparing with a gold standard measure (clinical diagnosis). Countries with consistent higher prevalence of depression based on PHQ-8 regardless of scoring method deserve further study.
Disclosure
This work has been funded by CIBERESP (ESP21PI05)
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| ISSN: | 0924-9338 1778-3585 |