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The short form of the Geriatric Depression Scale: a comparison with the 30-item form
Burke WJ, Roccaforte WH, Wengel SP.. Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology, 1991-07-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) exists in both short and long forms. The original 30-item form of the GDS has been shown to be an effective screening test for depression in a variety of settings. However, its utility in patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) is questionable. The short, 15-item version of the GDS was developed primarily for brevity and, in particular, for use in populations such as the medically ill or those with dementia, where the longer form might be burdensome. How well this short form works in these populations, however, is largely undetermined. In this paper, the sensitivity and specificity of the 15- and 30-item GDS are compared in a group of patients who were either cognitively intact or had mild DAT. The findings suggest that the short version of the GDS, like its longer predecessor, is an effective screening tool in the cognitively intact. However, in a population of subjects with mild DAT, it does not appear to retain its validity.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Burke, W. J., Roccaforte, W. H., & Wengel, S. P. (1991). The short form of the Geriatric Depression Scale: a comparison with the 30-item form. Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology. https://doi.org/10.1177/089198879100400310
Vancouver
Burke WJ, Roccaforte WH, Wengel SP. The short form of the Geriatric Depression Scale: a comparison with the 30-item form. Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology. 1991. doi:10.1177/089198879100400310. PMID: 1953971.
BibTeX
@article{burke1991-1953971,
author = {Burke, W. J. and Roccaforte, W. H. and Wengel, S. P.},
title = {{The short form of the Geriatric Depression Scale: a comparison with the 30-item form}},
journal = {Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology},
year = {1991},
doi = {10.1177/089198879100400310},
pmid = {1953971},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1177/089198879100400310}
}
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Key findings
- The findings suggest that the short version of the GDS, like its longer predecessor, is an effective screening tool in the cognitively intact.
Why it matters
This study compared two versions of a depression screening scale and found the short version did not appear to retain its validity in people with mild dementia of the Alzheimer type. It concerns screening for depression, not treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 42/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on institution's track record, so that was left out: it earned 41 of the 97 points we could judge it on, which is 42 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of geriatric psychiatry and neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology: journal h-index 105 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1991 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 734 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 19.8 citations a year over 37 year(s) since 1991 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 16 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 98 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Steven P. Wengel: h-index 23 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 0 institution(s) in 0 countries — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 1953971) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 41 / 97 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 41 of the 97 points we could judge it on is 42 out of 100. |
| Total | 42 / 100 | — |
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