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Screening for serious mental illness in the general population
Ronald C Kessler1, Peggy R Barker, Lisa J Colpe
1Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, 180 Longwood Ave, Suite 215, Boston, MA 02115, USA. kessler@hcp.med.harvard.edu
Archives of General Psychiatry
|February 13, 2003
Summary
The K6 and K10 scales effectively screen for serious mental illness (SMI) in adults. These brief, accurate tools can improve the estimation of SMI prevalence in epidemiological studies.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Epidemiology
- Mental Health Screening
Background:
- Public Law 102-321 mandated the development of methods to estimate serious mental illness (SMI) prevalence.
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) was tasked with this development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of three screening scales for identifying serious mental illness (SMI).
- To determine the best screening tool for use in national surveys.
Main Methods:
- Three screening scales (CIDI-SF, K10/K6, WHO-DAS) were administered to 155 participants.
- Participants also underwent a 12-month Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV and GAF assessment.
- SMI was defined as any 12-month DSM-IV disorder (excluding substance use) with a GAF score < 60.
Main Results:
- All tested scales significantly correlated with SMI.
- K10 and K6 scales demonstrated superior predictive accuracy compared to CIDI-SF and WHO-DAS.
- The K6 scale showed high specificity (0.96) and a notable area under the curve (0.865) for SMI prediction.
Conclusions:
- The K6 and K10 scales are brief and accurate for screening serious mental illness (SMI).
- Their inclusion in clinical studies can bridge community and clinical epidemiology.