Is the DSM-5 Anxious Distress Specifier Interview a valid measure of anxiety in patients with generalized anxiety disorder: A comparison to the Hamilton Anxiety Scale.

DSM-5 includes criteria for an anxious distress specifier for major depressive disorder, and measures have been developed to assess these criteria. The validity of measures of the severity of anxious distress has been established in depressed patients. In the present report from the Rhode Island Methods to Improve Diagnostic Assessment and Services (MIDAS) project, we examined whether a severity measure of anxious distress was as valid as the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) as a measure of the severity of anxiety in patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Eighty-five patients with GAD were interviewed by trained raters who administered the DSM-5 Anxious Distress Specifier Interview (DADSI), HAMA, and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD). The patients completed self-report measures of depression, anxiety, and irritability. The DADSI and HAMA were significantly correlated (r  0.52, p < .001). Both the DADSI and HAMA were more highly correlated with measures of anxiety than with measures of the other symptom domains. The HAMD was significantly more highly correlated with the HAMA than with the DADSI. Both measures were significantly correlated with measures of positive mental health, functioning, life satisfaction, and general well-being. Both measures were sensitive to change in response to treatment. Both the DADSI and HAMA were valid measures of anxiety severity in patients with GAD, though the HAMA was more highly confounded with the HAMD than the DADSI. The DADSI is briefer than the HAMA, and thus may be more practical to use in research studies as well as clinical practice.