Screening for depressive disorders in outpatients with mild to moderate psoriasis: a study from North India

Psoriasis and depressive disorders commonly occur together. Depressive disorders have an impact on the quality of life and the outcome of psoriasis. The aim of this study was to test the feasibility of using a modification of the Hindi translation of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) as a verbal, clinician administered, short screening questionnaire for detecting depressive disorders. One hundred and four out-patients with psoriasis were recruited in the study. In the first stage of the study, socio-demographic data, Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score, and Dermatological Quality of Life (DLQI) score were recorded. The modified questionnaire was administered by the dermatologist. In the second stage, psychiatric diagnoses were confirmed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. The prevalence of depressive disorders was 39.4%. Receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis showed that the questionnaire had a good discriminant ability in detecting depressive disorders (area under curve: 0.81, SE = 0.04, 95% confidence interval = 0.72-0.89). The sample size is small and more studies are needed with the screening questions in different languages to validate the findings of the study. The questionnaire can be a useful screening instrument for detecting depressive disorders in patients with psoriasis.