This study validated a French language version of an inventory designed to
detect symptoms of depression and anxiety [Goldberg et at, 1987] in a sampl
e of elderly French-speaking inpatients at risk for one of these disorders.
Latent trait analysis was used to replicate the structure of the symptoms
in the inventory, and receiver operating characteristic analysis was used t
o assess the performance of the inventory as a screening measure for Major
Depressive Episode acid Generalised Anxiety Disorder according to DSM-IV cr
iteria; Reflecting the ascertainment of individuals in the sample as being
at risk for a disorder, prevalence of individual Symptoms was high although
the general structure of the inventory was found to be comparable to that
found in samples of both community elderly and younger medical patients. RO
C analyses showed that the subscales of inventory performed satisfactorily
as screening measures for anxiety or depression but lacked specificity for
each disorder. In addition to providing further evidence for the utility of
this inventory to detect general psychiatric distress in elderly persons,
this study provides a valid means of detecting symptoms of depression and a
nxiety in French speaking groups. (C) 1999 Elsevier, Paris.