Analysis of the PHQ-15 by individual itemsa systematic review and meta-analysis

  1. Oleksandr Boikoa 1
  2. Sara Barrio-Martínez 23
  3. Amador Priede 24
  4. Ludovica Ventura 25
  5. Nerea Gómez-Carazo 5
  6. Aida Hernández-Abellán 5
  7. Esther Setién-Suero 2
  8. César González-Blanch 25
  1. 1 Unidad de Formación, Docencia e Investigación. Gerencia de Atención Primaria. Santander, España.
  2. 2 Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, España. Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Marqués de Valdecilla (IDIVAL), Santander, España
  3. 3 Facultad de Psicología. Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Madrid (España)
  4. 4 Unidad de Salud Mental. Hospital de Laredo, Laredo, España.
  5. 5 Unidad de Salud Mental “Puertochico”, Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla, Santander, España
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Journal:
Ansiedad y estrés

ISSN: 1134-7937

Year of publication: 2022

Volume: 28

Issue: 1

Pages: 62-73

Type: Article

DOI: 10.5093/ANYES2022A7 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Ansiedad y estrés

Abstract

Background: The Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15) is among the most commonly used questionnaires to assess somatic symptoms in primary care settings. The aim of our study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the studies that have analysed individual items from the PHQ-15 to determine the influence of differences in sociodemographic and clinical variables. Methods: This systematic review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA statement. Studies analysing PHQ-15 by individual items were searched in Medline/PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus from 1999 to November 2019. Results: Data were extracted from 13 studies. The most frequently reported symptoms were “pain in your arms, legs, or joints”, “back pain”, “headaches”, and “feeling tired or having low energy”. In patients with mental health disorders (depression, anxiety disorder, and somatoform disorder), the most commonly reported somatic symptoms were “trouble sleeping”, “feeling tired or having low energy”, and digestive symptoms. In the meta-analysis, females scored significantly higher than males on 3 of 14 items: “headaches” (odds ratio [OR] 2.16, p<.001), “dizziness” (OR 1.58, p<.001), and “stomach pain” (OR 1.46, p<.02), with a small to moderate effect size for these differences. Conclusions: Gender differences were detected for three items (headaches, dizziness, and stomach pain), although the magnitude of these differences was small. Further research is needed to better understand the relationship between individual items and other sociodemographic variables. In addition, more research is needed to determine measurement invariance across various demographic groups.

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