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Subject Area

Obstetrics and Gynecology

Article Type

Original Study

Abstract

Objectives To develop an Arabic version of the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) to detect and measure anxiety and depression prevalence in dizzy patients. Background Dizziness is a common complaint that has many causes and may be related to psychiatric disorders like anxiety and depression. Early detection of anxiety and depression in dizzy patients helps in proper management and a better outcome. The HADS is a valid screening tool, and having an Arabic version will be of great help. Patients and methods The original English HADS was translated following the cross-cultural adaptation guidelines into Arabic. The final Arabic version of HADS was administered to samples of 100 healthy control persons, 30 anxious patients, and 30 depressed patients. Reliability and validity of the translated Arabic HADS were examined. The prevalence of anxiety and depression in dizzy patients were assessed through 100 dizzy patients who were asked to complete the validated Arabic HADS. Results The translated Arabic HADS was found to be reliable with strong internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha was 0.811 for the anxiety group and 0.758 for the depression group). The test–retest reliability was high (Spearman's correlation was 0.980 for the anxiety group and 0.928 for the depression group). There was a good correlation between psychiatric assessment and HADS for anxiety and depression using the Mann–Whitney test, indicating its validity. We performed the receiver operating characteristics curve, and the most sensitive cutoff point for HADS anxiety subscale was 8.5 and for HADS depression subscale was 9.5. In the dizzy group, 32% gave positive HADS scores for anxiety subscale and 22% gave positive HADS scores for depression subscale. Conclusions This version of the Arabic HADS is a reliable and valid psychological screening tool for anxiety and depression. The anxiety and depression prevalence in the dizzy patients was 32% and 22%, respectively.

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