Women who miscarry: The effectiveness and clinical utility of the Kessler 10 questionnaire in screening for ongoing psychological distress
Date
2010
Authors
Stallman, H.
McDermott, R.
Beckmann, M.M.
Kay, W.M.
Adams, K.
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Advisors
Journal Title
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Type:
Journal article
Citation
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 2010; 70(1):50-76
Statement of Responsibility
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Abstract
<jats:p><jats:bold>Background: </jats:bold> Early pregnancy loss has been linked to enduring psychological morbidity.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Aims: </jats:bold> This study aimed to investigate the utility of the Kessler 10 (K10) questionnaire as a brief screening instrument to identify women at risk for the development of psychiatric diagnoses three months post‐miscarriage.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Method: </jats:bold> Participants were 117 consecutive women presenting at a public hospital emergency department and receiving a diagnosis of miscarriage.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Main outcome measures: </jats:bold> K10 screen for psychological distress and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Disorders to determine psychiatric diagnoses.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Results: </jats:bold> A majority of women (81.2%) experienced elevated levels of distress initially, 24.8% in the very high range. They were not at increased risk of psychiatric diagnoses at three months compared with the general population; however, they were significantly more likely to report subsyndromal symptoms at this time compared with the general population. The baseline K10 score was the only significant predictor of distress at follow‐up (<jats:italic>r </jats:italic>=<jats:italic> </jats:italic>0.45, <jats:italic>P </jats:italic><<jats:italic> </jats:italic>0.001). The receiver operating characteristic curve shows that a cut‐off of 14 on the K10 has suitable sensitivity (97%) and specificity (82%) for predicting ongoing psychological distress in women who miscarry.</jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Conclusions: </jats:bold> The K10 is effective in identifying women at risk for ensuring psychological symptoms following miscarriage.</jats:p>