neuroglympse

Clinical reference

Assessment scales for depression, PCS, PTSD and anxiety

An overview of the instruments our clinicians use to quantify symptoms, and how their scores are conventionally interpreted.

Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-I, Beck 1961)1

A widely used self-report measure of depression severity. Twenty-one items, each scored 0–3 across four statements of increasing severity, rated over the previous two weeks including the day of assessment.

What it assesses: Mood, pessimism, sense of failure, self-dissatisfaction, guilt, punishment, suicidal ideation, crying, irritability, social withdrawal, body image change, work difficulty, insomnia, fatigue, appetite, weight loss, bodily preoccupation and loss of libido.

Read this first. These are the bands for the original BDI (Beck 1961). The BDI-II is a different instrument with different cut-offs — a BDI-II score read against this table will be misinterpreted. Check which version was administered before interpreting any score.
Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-I, Beck 1961) score interpretation bands
ScoreInterpretation
0–10Normal ups and downs
11–16Mild mood disturbance
17–20Borderline clinical depression
21–30Moderate depression
31–40Severe depression
41 and aboveExtreme depression

Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ)2

Assesses the severity of post-concussion symptoms after traumatic brain injury, using two scoring systems. RPQ-3 covers the early symptom cluster (the first three items); RPQ-13 covers the remaining thirteen, spanning cognitive, sensory and emotional effects.

What it assesses: RPQ-3 targets headache, dizziness and nausea. RPQ-13 broadens to cognitive, sensory and emotional symptoms.

Read this first. The RPQ has no validated severity cut-points. These groupings are a descriptive convention for reading a total score, not diagnostic thresholds, and no clinical decision should rest on which group a score falls into. Report the total with the item breakdown.
Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ) score interpretation bands
ScoreInterpretation
RPQ-3: 0–3Lower reported symptom burden
RPQ-3: 4–7Moderate reported symptom burden
RPQ-3: 8–12Higher reported symptom burden
RPQ-13: 0–17Lower reported symptom burden
RPQ-13: 18–34Moderate reported symptom burden
RPQ-13: 35–52Higher reported symptom burden

PTSD Checklist (PCL-5, DSM-5 version)3

Self-report measures of PTSD symptom severity. The PCL-5 is aligned to DSM-5 criteria; the PCL-C is the earlier civilian version.

What it assesses: Twenty items corresponding to DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters, each rated 0–4.

PTSD Checklist (PCL-5, DSM-5 version) score interpretation bands
ScoreInterpretation
0–19No or minimal PTSD symptoms
20–29Mild symptoms; may warrant further evaluation
30–39Moderate symptoms; further evaluation indicated
40 and aboveHigh symptom burden; diagnosis requires clinical assessment

Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A)4

A clinician-administered scale quantifying the severity of anxiety syndrome. Fourteen indicators, each defined by several symptoms and rated 0 (none) to 4 (severe).

What it assesses: Both psychic anxiety (mental agitation, psychological distress) and somatic anxiety (physical complaints related to anxiety).

Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) score interpretation bands
ScoreInterpretation
17 and belowMild anxiety severity
18–24Mild to moderate anxiety
25–30Moderate to severe anxiety
31 and aboveSevere anxiety

References

Score interpretation bands below summarise each instrument's conventional published interpretation. Confirm against the documentation for the specific version you are using.

  1. 1.Beck AT, Ward CH, Mendelson M, Mock J, Erbaugh J. An inventory for measuring depression. Archives of General Psychiatry. 1961;4:561–571.
  2. 2.King NS, Crawford S, Wenden FJ, Moss NEG, Wade DT. The Rivermead Post Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire: a measure of symptoms commonly experienced after head injury and its reliability. Journal of Neurology. 1995;242(9):587–592.
  3. 3.Blevins CA, Weathers FW, Davis MT, Witte TK, Domino JL. The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5): development and initial psychometric evaluation. Journal of Traumatic Stress. 2015;28(6):489–498.
  4. 4.Hamilton M. The assessment of anxiety states by rating. British Journal of Medical Psychology. 1959;32:50–55.

This page is educational and is not medical advice. Prevalence figures are presented as the source reports them, including confidence intervals and ranges; a single number would imply more precision than the evidence supports.

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