Accuracy of methods for tracking anxiety and depression symptoms in childrens and adolescentes: integrative review

Abstract

Objective: This integrative review article’s purpose is to compare the accuracy tracking methods for anxiety and depression symptoms in children and adolescentes. Methods: Studies that investigate the accuracy of diagnosis methods for anxiety and depression in children and adolescents were reviewed, including a variety of questionnaires and psychometric properties (specificity, sensibility and under the curve area) compared to the golden standard. Results: The results highlights that some questionnaires, such as SCARED and RCADS, presents sensibility and specificity appropriate for diagnosis (AUC= 0,9; 0,98 and 0,72; 0,82, respectively). However, other scales presented mixed results, indicating the necessity of further research to have a better rating of their accuracy. Conclusion: Comprehending the challenges of an accurate diagnosis for anxiety and depression in children and adolescents is essential to improve the treatment and intervention approaches. This integrative review emphasizes the significance of research about psychometric data for more diagnosis with accuracy and reliability.