Validation of the Arabic Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-5) among the Lebanese Geriatric Population

S. Hallit 1-4, R. Hallit 3, C. Boulos 5, D. Hachem 4, M.-C. Daher Nasra 6 7, N. Kheir 8, P. Salameh 9

1 Lebanese University, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beirut, Lebanon; 2 Saint-Joseph University, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beirut, Lebanon; 3 Universite Saint Esprit Kaslik, Faculty of Medicine, Kaslik, Lebanon; 4 Psychiatric Hospital of the Cross, Jal Eddib, Lebanon; 5 Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Pharmacy, Saint Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon; 6 Ecole Superieure des Affaires, Lebanon; 7 Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sante Publique, Rennes, France; 8 Lebanese University, Faculty of Sciences 2, Fanar, Lebanon; 9 Lebanese University, Faculty of Medicine, Beirut, Lebanon

Objective

Translate the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS- 5 items) to Arabic for use in elderly patients in Lebanon, to check its validity and reproducibility compared to the original version of the questionnaire.

Methods

This case-control study was conducted between June and August 2016 and included 500 patients aged more than 60 years old.

Results

Strong positive correlations (p < 0.001 for all items of the scale) were found between each item of the scale and the total scale. The mean inter-item correlation for our scale was 0.49, higher than that of the original scale (0.36). The internal consistency reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) for the total GDS scale was α = 0.734, compared to 0.83 and 0.901 for the Arabic GDS-15 and GDS-30 respectively. 

Conclusions

These preliminary results suggest that the Arabic version of the GDS has promising psychometric properties and can be used to estimate the overall severity of depression in the elderly population of Lebanon. Because it is short and easy to administer, it is recommended to be used as a routine screening test to identify depression among older adults in all Arabic-speaking populations, including the Gulf and most North African countries, and in all Arab immigrants around the world.

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