Journal of Traumatic Stress
Volume 32, Issue 1, 2019, Pages 148-155

Screening for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Refugees: Comparison of the Diagnostic Efficiency of Two Self-Rating Measures of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Article) (Open Access)

Wulfes N.* , del Pozo M.A. , Buhr-Riehm B. , Heinrichs N. , Kröger C.
  • a Department of Psychology, University of Hildesheim, Hildesheim, Germany
  • b Department of Psychology, Technical University of Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany
  • c Public Health Department Braunschweig, City of Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany
  • d Department of Psychology, Technical University of Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany
  • e Department of Psychology, University of Hildesheim, Hildesheim, Germany

Abstract

There is a high prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the refugee population. In order to identify affected individuals and offer targeted help, there is an urgent need for easily understandable, reliable, valid, and efficient screening measures. The aim of the present study was to compare the diagnostic efficiency of the Process of Recognition and Orientation of Torture Victims in European Countries to Facilitate Care and Treatment (PROTECT) questionnaire (PQ) to that of the eight-item short-form Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale (PDS-8) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Using structured clinical interviews, the prevalence rates of PTSD and major depression episode (MDE) were assessed in a refugee sample (N = 118), and receiver operating characteristic analyses were determined and compared. Of participants in the sample, 29.7%, 95% CI [22.0%, 38.5%], were diagnosed with PTSD and 33.1%, 95% CI [24.4%, 41.9%], were diagnosed with MDE. The area under the curve (AUC) for all measures was moderate, AUCs = 0.79–0.86; hence, measures did not differ in terms of their discriminatory abilities. Using the favored cutoff points, sensitivity and specificity were 80–97% and 60–70%, respectively. In terms of their discriminatory abilities, none of the investigated measures can be favored more than the others. Thus, for detection of these two disorders, the shorter PQ could be more efficient. Because the high co-occurrence of PTSD and MDE might limit the explanatory power of results in the present study, the findings should be cross-validated in the future. © 2019 International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies

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Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85060803383&doi=10.1002%2fjts.22358&partnerID=40&md5=cbd416632caca2ab0b2f27bc8078946a

DOI: 10.1002/jts.22358
ISSN: 08949867
Original Language: English