Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Multicenter Study
A multicenter study of depression among emergency department patients.
The authors sought to determine the 12-month prevalence of depression among emergency department (ED) patients using a single-question screen. ⋯ A 30% 12-month prevalence of depression among ED patients was found. Depressed patients had a distinct sociodemographic and health profile. In the future, awareness of risk factors for depression in the ED setting and use of simple screening instruments could aid in the recognition of depression, with subsequent referral to mental health services.