Past Issues
The Validity of the Five-item Brief Psychiatric
Symptom Rating Scale among General
Hospital Inpatients
Yu-Ting Wang, M.D.1,4, Yen-Kuang Yang, M.D.1,2,5, Kao-Ching Chen, M.D.1,2, Tzung-Lieh Yeh, M.D.1,2, Ru-Band Lu, M.D.1,2,3,5
Objective: The aim of this study was to screen for mental illness in non-psychiatric
medical inpatients in a university hospital using the fi ve-item brief psychiatric
symptom rating scale (BSRS-5). Method:Thirty participants whose BSRS-
5 scores were greater than or equal to 6 were chosen randomly from 245 inpatients,
and 18 of these patients were assessed using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric
Interview (MINI) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D).
Results: Six of the 18 selected patients (33.3%) were diagnosed as having a psychiatric
disorder by MINI. The mean of the HAM-D scores was 11.71±6.80. The
receiver-operating-characteristics curve showed that a BSRS-5 cut-off score of 11
provided sensitivity (0.5) and specifi city (0.75). Conclusion: The cut-off point
needs to be adjusted when using the BSRS-5 in patients on a non-psychiatric medical
ward with a BSRS-5 score of greater than or equal to 6.
medical inpatients in a university hospital using the fi ve-item brief psychiatric
symptom rating scale (BSRS-5). Method:Thirty participants whose BSRS-
5 scores were greater than or equal to 6 were chosen randomly from 245 inpatients,
and 18 of these patients were assessed using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric
Interview (MINI) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D).
Results: Six of the 18 selected patients (33.3%) were diagnosed as having a psychiatric
disorder by MINI. The mean of the HAM-D scores was 11.71±6.80. The
receiver-operating-characteristics curve showed that a BSRS-5 cut-off score of 11
provided sensitivity (0.5) and specifi city (0.75). Conclusion: The cut-off point
needs to be adjusted when using the BSRS-5 in patients on a non-psychiatric medical
ward with a BSRS-5 score of greater than or equal to 6.
| Key Word | BSRS-5, comorbidity |
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