Nepali Version of Geriatric Depression Scale-15 - A Reliability and Validation Study.

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Psychiatry
• Psychometric Validation
• Cross-cultural Adaptation

Background:

• Geriatric depression is a global health concern.
• The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) is a widely used tool for assessing depression in older adults.
• The GDS-15 version in Nepali had not been previously validated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To translate and validate the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) into Nepali.
• To assess the reliability and validity of the Nepali GDS-15 for use in Nepal.

Main Methods:

• The GDS-15 was translated into Nepali and administered to 106 participants aged 60+ years.
• Participants were interviewed by a psychiatrist using ICD-10 criteria.
• Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha, and validity was evaluated using sensitivity and specificity at different cut-off points.

Main Results:

• Cronbach's alpha was 0.79, indicating good internal consistency.
• The optimal cut-off point was determined to be 5/6.
• Sensitivity was 86.3% and specificity was 74.5% at the 5/6 cut-off.

Conclusions:

• The Nepali GDS-15 is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing geriatric depression.
• The scale demonstrates adequate internal consistency and an optimal balance of sensitivity and specificity.
• The Nepali GDS-15 is suitable for epidemiological research and primary healthcare settings in Nepal.