Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression

Methodology

The patient is rated by a clinician on 17 to 29 items (depending on version) scored either on a 3-point or 5-point Likert-type scale. For the 17-item version, a score of 0–7 is considered to be normal while a score of 20 or higher (indicating at least moderate severity) is usually required for entry into a clinical trial. Questions 18–20 may be recorded to give further information about the depression (such as whether diurnal variation or paranoid symptoms are present), but are not part of the scale. A structured interview guide for the questionnaire is available.

Although Hamilton's original scale had 17 items, other versions included up to 29 items (HRSD-29).

Unstructured versions of the HDRS provide general instructions for rating items, while structured versions may provide definitions and/or specific interview questions for use. Structured versions of the HDRS show more reliability than unstructured versions with informed use.

Levels of depression

The UK National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence has specified the following "levels of depression" based on the 17-item HRSD. It previously used the terms in parentheses, which are those of the American Psychiatric Association.

• Not depressed: 0–7
• Mild (subthreshold): 8–13
• Moderate (mild): 14–18
• Severe (moderate): 19–22
• Very severe (severe): 23

Other scales

Other scales include the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale, the Wechsler Depression Rating Scale, the Raskin Depression Rating Scale, the Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (IDS), the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS), PHQ-9, and other questionnaires.

Notes

References

1. "the ham-d scale".
2. Hedlund JL, Viewig BW. (1979). "The Hamilton rating scale for depression: a comprehensive review". Journal of Operational Psychiatry.
3. Hamilton M. (1960). "A rating scale for depression". Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry.
4. Hamilton M. (1966). "Assessment of change in psychiatric state by means of rating scales". Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine.
5. Hamilton M. (1967). "Development of a rating scale for primary depressive illness". British Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology.
6. Hamilton M. (1969). "Standardised assessment and recording of depressive symptoms". Psychiatria, Neurologia, Neurochirurgia.
7. Hamilton, M. (1980). "Rating depressive patients". Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.
8. Firestone, R.W., & Firestone, L.A. (1996). ''Firestone Assessment of Self-Destructive Thoughts Manual.'' San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.
9. (2004). "The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale: has the gold standard become a lead weight?". American Journal of Psychiatry.
10. Berrios, G.E., & Bulbena, A. (1990). The Hamilton Depression Scale and the Numerical Description of the Symptoms of Depression. In Bech, P., & Coppen, A. (Eds.), ''The Hamilton Scales'', Heidelberg: Springer, pp. 80–92
11. HDRS-17: [http://dcf.psychiatry.ufl.edu/files/2011/05/HAMILTON-DEPRESSION.pdf Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS)] at [http://dcf.psychiatry.ufl.edu University of Florida, College of Medicine].'''Additional Questions''' Retrieved December 12, 2011.
12. Williams JB. (1989). "A structured interview guide for the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale". Archives of General Psychiatry.
13. (2007-07-05 }} ''in'' [http://www.canmat.org/ Official website of CANMAT: Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments] {{webarchive). "Assessing full remission". J Psychiatry Neurosci.
14. HRSD-21: [http://healthnet.umassmed.edu/mhealth/HAMD.pdf The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression] {{Webarchive. link. (2007-11-20 (to be administered by a health care professional) (presented as a service by [[GlaxoWellcome]], February 1997) ''in'' [http://healthnet.umassmed.edu UMass HealthNet: Consumer Health Resources for Massachusetts Residents: Official website of the Lamar Soutter Library, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01655 USA] {{Webarchive). link. (2017-08-29 . Retrieved June 27, 2008.)
15. HRSD-24: [http://www.medafile.com/cln/HDRS.html Hamilton Depression Rating Scale — 24 item] (to be completed by a trained clinician) ''in'' [http://www.medafile.com FOCUS ON ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: MEDAFILE; Site constructed and maintained by J. Wesson Ashford, M.D., Ph.D., Stanford / VA Alzheimer's Center, Palo Alto VA Hospital, 3801 Miranda Way, Palo Alto, CA 94304 USA]. Retrieved June 27, 2008.
16. HRSD-29: Williams JBW, Link MJ, Rosenthal NE, Terman M, Structured Interview Guide for the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Seasonal Affective Disorders Version (SIGHSAD). New York Psychiatric Institute, New York, 1988
17. (2020-04-14). "The Hamilton Rating Scales for Depression: A Critical Review of Clinimetric Properties of Different Versions". Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.
18. ((National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health)). (2010). "Depression: The Treatment and Management of Depression in Adults". British Psychological Society.
19. (October 1963). "The depression rating scale: a quantitative approach to the assessment of depressive symptomatology". Archives of General Psychiatry.
20. (1969). "Replication of factors of psychopathology in interview, ward behavior and self-report ratings of hospitalized depressives". Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease.
21. [http://www.ids-qids.org/index2.html Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (IDS) & Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS)] {{Webarchive. link. (2007-06-26 ''in'' [http://www.ids-qids.org/ IDS/QIDS: Instruments in English and Multiple Translations] by the [[University of Pittsburgh Epidemiology Data Center]], 2008. Retrieved June 27, 2008.)
22. (September 2001). "The PHQ-9: validity of a brief depression severity measure". J Gen Intern Med.
23. [http://www.neurotransmitter.net/depressionscales.html Psychiatric Rating Scales for Depression] ''in'' [http://www.neurotransmitter.net www.neurotransmitter.net website] by [http://www.neurotransmitter.net/bio.html Shawn M. Thomas]. Retrieved June 30, 2008.
24. Boyle GJ. (1985). "Self report measures of depression: Some psychometric considerations". British Journal of Clinical Psychology.