SynthesisPsychotherapy and psychosomatics2020
The Accuracy of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 Algorithm for Screening to Detect Major Depression: An Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis.
Abstract readMeta-AnalysisValidation Study
In one paragraph
Synthesis in Psychotherapy and psychosomatics, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 60 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
60citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
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What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
60 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of diagnostic test accuracy of mental health screening tools applicable to adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
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- Diagnostic Accuracy of Mental Health Screening Tools After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.JAMA network open · 2024Trial
- Multifactorial associations of non-suicidal self-injury among adolescents with depression: a network analytic perspective.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Perceived stress and depression in Chinese university students: a parallel mediation analysis examining the roles of insomnia and somatic symptoms.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- HMDF-Net: a transfer learning-based heterogeneous multimodal dynamic fusion network for depression detection among inmates in correctional facilities.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- The Association Between Depression and Survival in Asthma: The Mediating Role of Income.Depression and anxiety · 2026Article
- Effects of occupational stress on the distribution of circulating T lymphocyte subsets and psychological health of young anaesthesiologists.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Longitudinal associations between depressive symptoms and cell deformability: do glucocorticoids play a role?European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2025Article
- Association of Dexmedetomidine With Postoperative Depressive Symptoms in Older Surgical Patients: A Prospective Multicenter Study.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2025Observational
- Is there a mental health diagnostic crisis in primary care? Current research practices in global mental health cannot answer that question.Epidemiology and psychiatric sciences · 2025Article
- Performance evaluation of a novel screening tool for depressive episodes in COMISA: a comparative analysis with standard neuropsychometric assessments.Frontiers in sleep · 2025Article
- Uncovering hidden depression: the critical role of depression screening in sleep disorders at U.S. sleep centers.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Prevalence of depressive symptoms and associated factors in Brazilian older adults: 2019 Brazilian National Health Survey.Cadernos de saude publica · 2025Article
- Clinical association between current depressive symptoms and odds ratio product in US sleep centers.Frontiers in sleep · 2025Article
- Association of brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels at different trimesters and new-onset depressive symptom in the third trimester among pregnant women: a longitudinal study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Article
- COVID-19 Pandemic Increases the Risk of Anxiety and Depression among Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study in Rural West Bengal, India.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- The multimorbidity association of metabolic syndrome and depression on type 2 diabetes: a general population cohort study in Southwest China.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2024Article
- Depression and health literacy among adolescents and adults in Germany: findings from two representative samples.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
87 authors.
Chen HeLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Brooke LevisLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Kira E RiehmLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Nazanin SaadatLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Alexander W LevisLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Marleine AzarLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Danielle B RiceLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Ankur KrishnanLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Yin WuLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Ying SunLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Mahrukh ImranLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Jill BoruffSchulich Library of Physical Sciences, Life Sciences and Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, Québec, Canada.
Pim CuijpersDepartment of Clinical, Neuro- and Developmental Psychology, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Simon GilbodyHull York Medical School and the Department of Health Sciences, University of York, Heslington, United Kingdom.
John P A IoannidisDepartment of Medicine, Department of Health Research and Policy, Department of Biomedical Data Science, Department of Statistics, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
Lorie A KlodaLibrary, Concordia University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Dean McMillanHull York Medical School and the Department of Health Sciences, University of York, Heslington, United Kingdom.
Scott B PattenDepartment of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Ian ShrierLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Roy C ZiegelsteinDepartment of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Dickens H AkenaDepartment of Psychiatry, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda.
Bruce ArrollDepartment of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Liat AyalonLouis and Gabi Weisfeld School of Social Work, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel.
Hamid R BaradaranEndocrine Research Center, Institute of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Murray BaronLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Anna BeraldiKbo-Lech-Mangfall-Klinik Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Klinik für Psychiatrie, Psychotherapie und Psychosomatik, Lehrkrankenhaus der Technischen Universität München, Munich, Germany.
Charles H BombardierDepartment of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Peter ButterworthCentre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing, Research School of Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
Gregory CarterCentre for Brain and Mental Health Research, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.
Marcos Hortes Nisihara ChagasDepartment of Medicine and Therapeutics, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Juliana C N ChanDepartment of Medicine and Therapeutics, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Rushina CholeraDepartment of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
Kerrie CloverCentre for Brain and Mental Health Research, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.
Yeates ConwellDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, USA.
Janneke M de Man-van GinkelJulius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Jesse R FannDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Felix H FischerDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine, Center for Internal Medicine and Dermatology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Daniel FungDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health, Singapore, Singapore.
Bizu GelayeDepartment of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Felicity Goodyear-SmithDepartment of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
Catherine G GreenoSchool of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Brian J HallGlobal and Community Mental Health Research Group, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China.
Patricia A HarrisonCity of Minneapolis Health Department, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Martin HärterDepartment of Medical Psychology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Ulrich HegerlDepartment of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, German Depression Foundation, Frankfurt, Germany.
Leanne HidesSchool of Psychology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Stevan E HobfollSTAR-Stress, Anxiety and Resilience Consultants, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Marie HudsonLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Thomas N HyphantisFaculty of Medicine, School of Health Sciences, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece.
Masatoshi InagakiDepartment of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Shimane University, Shimane, Japan.
Khalida IsmailDepartment of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neurosciences, King's College London Weston Education Centre, London, United Kingdom.
Nathalie JettéDepartment of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Mohammad E KhamsehEndocrine Research Center, Institute of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Kim M KielySchool of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Yunxin KwanDepartment of Psychological Medicine, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
Femke LamersDepartment of Psychiatry, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Shen-Ing LiuProgramme in Health Services and Systems Research, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore.
Manote LotrakulDepartment of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.
Sonia R LoureiroDepartment of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
Bernd LöweDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Laura MarshBaylor College of Medicine Houston and Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Houston, Texas, USA.
Anthony McGuireDepartment of Nursing, St. Joseph's College, Standish, Maine, USA.
Sherina Mohd-SidikCancer Resource and Education Centre, and Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia.
Tiago N MunhozPostgraduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
Kumiko MuramatsuDepartment of Clinical Psychology, Graduate School of Niigata Seiryo University, Niigata, Japan.
Flávia L OsórioDepartment of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
Vikram PatelDepartment of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Brian W PenceDepartment of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
Philippe PersoonsDepartment of Adult Psychiatry, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Angelo PicardiCentre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Italian National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy.
Katrin ReuterPractice for Psychotherapy and Psycho-Oncology, Freiburg, Germany.
Alasdair G RooneyDivision of Psychiatry, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburg, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Iná S da Silva Dos SantosPostgraduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil.
Juwita ShaabanDepartment of Family Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia.
Abbey SidebottomAllina Health, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Adam SimningDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, USA.
Lesley StaffordCentre for Women's Mental Health, Royal Women's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
Sharon SungDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute of Mental Health, Singapore, Singapore.
Pei Lin Lynnette TanDepartment of Psychological Medicine, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore.
Alyna TurnerSchool of Medicine and Public Health, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.
Henk C P M van WeertDepartment of General Practice, Amsterdam Institute for General Practice and Public Health, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Jennifer WhiteMonash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Mary A WhooleyDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
Kirsty WinkleyFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Mitsuhiko YamadaDepartment of Neuropsychopharmacology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Kodaira, Japan.
Brett D ThombsLady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Jewish General Hospital, Montréal, Québec, Canada, brett.thombs@mcgill.ca.
Andrea BenedettiDepartment of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Funding
Obesity and Energy Metabolism CoreP30DK050456 · NIDDK · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES · PI JEFFERY, ROBERT W · 1995 to 2015
$17.0MUniversity of Rochester Mentoring Environment: Nurturing Training Opportunities in Research (UR-MENTOR)T32GM007356 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · PI O'BANION, M. KERRY · 1985 to 2023
$15.1MCDC Injury Control Research Center for Preventing Suicide (CDC ICRC S)R49CE002093 · CE · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · PI CAINE, ERIC D. · 2012 to 2018
$5.6MEpidemiology of Depression and Heart Failure in AgingR01HL079235 · NHLBI · NORTHERN CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE RES &EDUC · PI WHOOLEY, MARY A · 2005 to 2009
$4.2MThe University of Rochester's Clinical and Translational Science InstituteTL1RR024135 · NCRR · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · PI PEARSON, THOMAS ARTHUR · 2006 to 2011
$3.7MUniversity of Washington MHIRT Training Program GrantT37MD001449 · NIMHD · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON · PI WILLIAMS, MICHELLE A. · 2005 to 2018
$3.5MIP-RISP: The Senior Health and Research AllianceR24MH071604 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · PI CONWELL, YEATES · 2006 to 2010
$2.5MMethods of Optimal Depression Detection in Parkinson'sR01MH069666 · NIMH · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI MARSH, LAURA · 2004 to 2009
$2.3MTerrorism and Traumatic Responding: Exposure and Resiliency FactorsR01MH073687 · NIMH · RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER · PI HOBFOLL, STEVAN · 2006 to 2009
$2.2MTHE TREATMENT OF EATING DISORDERSK02MH065919 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES · PI CROW, SCOTT J · 2003 to 2007
$689kAdaptation of a Depression Treatment Intervention for HIV Patients in CameroonR34MH084673 · NIMH · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · PI GAYNES, BRADLEY N · 2009 to 2011
$627kStepped Care Treatment of Postpartum DepressionR34MH072925 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES · PI GJERDINGEN, DWENDA K. · 2005 to 2007
$489kAHRQ HHS R36 HS018246Medical Research Council MR/J000914/1MRF_ C0396NCIPC CDC HHS R49 CE002093NCRR NIH HHS TL1 RR024135NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL079235NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK050456NIGMS NIH HHS T32 GM007356NIMHD NIH HHS T37 MD001449NIMH NIH HHS F30 MH096664NIMH NIH HHS K02 MH065919NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH069666NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH073687NIMH NIH HHS R24 MH071604NIMH NIH HHS R34 MH072925NIMH NIH HHS R34 MH084673
Abstract
backgroundScreening for major depression with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) can be done using a cutoff or the PHQ-9 diagnostic algorithm. Many primary studies publish results for only one approach, and previous meta-analyses of the algorithm approach included only a subset of primary studies that collected data and could have published results.
objectiveTo use an individual participant data meta-analysis to evaluate the accuracy of two PHQ-9 diagnostic algorithms for detecting major depression and compare accuracy between the algorithms and the standard PHQ-9 cutoff score of ≥10.
methodsMedline, Medline In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations, PsycINFO, Web of Science (January 1, 2000, to February 7, 2015). Eligible studies that classified current major depression status using a validated diagnostic interview.
resultsData were included for 54 of 72 identified eligible studies (n participants = 16,688, n cases = 2,091). Among studies that used a semi-structured interview, pooled sensitivity and specificity (95% confidence interval) were 0.57 (0.49, 0.64) and 0.95 (0.94, 0.97) for the original algorithm and 0.61 (0.54, 0.68) and 0.95 (0.93, 0.96) for a modified algorithm. Algorithm sensitivity was 0.22-0.24 lower compared to fully structured interviews and 0.06-0.07 lower compared to the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Specificity was similar across reference standards. For PHQ-9 cutoff of ≥10 compared to semi-structured interviews, sensitivity and specificity (95% confidence interval) were 0.88 (0.82-0.92) and 0.86 (0.82-0.88).
conclusionsThe cutoff score approach appears to be a better option than a PHQ-9 algorithm for detecting major depression.
Indexed as
Data AccuracyPatient Health QuestionnaireAlgorithmsHumansMajor Depressive DisorderMass ScreeningPsychiatric Status Rating ScalesSensitivity and SpecificityDepressionDiagnostic accuracyMeta-analysisPatient Health Questionnaire-9Screening
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