The –ÅMontgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) is a ten-item diagnostic questionnaire which psychiatrists use to measure the severity of depressive episodes in patients with mood disorders. It was designed in 1979 by British and Swedish researchers (Marie Åsberg) as an adjunct to the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD) which would be more sensitive to the changes brought on by antidepressants and other forms of treatment than the Hamilton Scale was. There is, however, a high degree of statistical correlation between scores on the two measures.
Interpretation
The questionnaire includes questions on ten symptoms: Apparent sadness Reported sadness Inner tension Reduced sleep Reduced appetite Concentration difficulties Lassitude Inability to feel Pessimistic thoughts Suicidal thoughts
Each item yields a score of 0 to 6; the overall score thus ranges from 0 to 60. Higher MADRS score indicates more severe depression. Usual cutoff points are: 0 to 6: normal /symptom absent 7 to 19: mild depression 20 to 34: moderate depression 35 to 60: severe depression.
MADRS-S
A self-rating version of this scale (MADRS-S) is often used in clinical practice and correlates reasonably well with expert ratings. The MADRS-S instrument has nine questions, with an overall score ranging from 0 to 54 points.