Citation

Legha RK, Gerbasi ME, Smith Fawzi MC, Eustache E, Therosmé T, Fils-Aimé JR, Raviola GJ, Affricot E, Pierre EL, Alcindor Y, Severe J, Boyd KA, Grelotti DJ, Darghouth S, Rasmussen A, Becker AE. Confl. Health 2020; 14: e13.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, 15 Parkman Street, Boston, MA 02114 USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group - BMC)

DOI

10.1186/s13031-020-0250-9

PMID

32140176

PMCID

PMC7048134

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The Zanmi Lasante Depression Symptom Inventory (ZLDSI) is a screening tool for major depression used in 12 primary care clinics in Haiti's Central Plateau. Although previously validated in a clinic-based sample, the present study is the first to evaluate the validity and clinical utility of the ZLDSI for depression screening in a school-based population in central Haiti.

METHODS: We assessed depressive symptoms in a school-based sample of transitional age youth (18-22 years; n = 120) with the ZLDSI. Other mental health-related assessments included a modified Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders (SCID) for current Major Depressive Episode, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, and selected items adapted from the Global School-Based Health Survey mental health module. Diagnostic assignments of major depressive episode (MDE) were based on modified SCID interviews.

RESULTS: The ZLDSI demonstrated good overall accuracy in identifying current MDE (Area under the Curve = .92, 95% CI = .86,.98, p < .001). We ascertained ≥12 as the optimal cut-off point to screen for depression with a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 73.9%. In addition, the ZLDSI was associated with other measures of depressive symptoms, suggesting that it demonstrates construct validity.

CONCLUSIONS: Study findings support that the ZLDSI has clinical utility for screening for depression among school-going transitional age youth.

© The Author(s). 2020.

Language: en

Keywords

Depression screening tool; Global mental health; Haiti; School-based assessment; Validation