Validating the Structure of the Depression and Somatic Symptoms Scale

Background Depressed primary care patients may present with somatic symptoms first, complicating differential diagnosis. Clinicians have few instruments for assessing this comorbidity. Objective To evaluate the psychometrics of the translated Chinese Depression and Somatic Symptoms Scale (DSSS) in Americans. Procedures A total of 491 nonclinical but symptomatic ethnically-diverse individuals completed the DSSS and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Results Factor analysis yielded 2 distinct factors: depression and somatic symptoms. DSSS and subscales showed internal consistency, reliability, and convergent validity with CES-D and subscales. Conclusions These results support DSSS's trustworthiness for US populations. Using DSSS for patient assessment may assist diagnosis and inform interventions.