An examination of the psychometric properties of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale in Chinese patients with acute coronary syndrome.

Psychiatry Res. 2004 Dec 30; 129(3):279-88.PR

The psychometric properties of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) as a screening instrument for patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were investigated in a translated Chinese version of the instrument. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on the HADS to establish its psychometric properties in 138 ACS patients over two observation points (within 1 week and 6 months post-admission for ACS). Internal and test-retest reliability values for the HADS total and HADS anxiety sub-scales were found to be acceptable. The HADS depression sub-scale lacked acceptable internal reliability. The underlying factor structure of the HADS comprised three distinct factors, though inconsistency between the best three-factor model fit was observed between observation points. The HADS was confirmed to be a useful screening instrument to assess symptoms of psychological distress in ACS patients. Further research is required to determine the most appropriate use of HADS sub-scale structures in clinical populations.