Portuguese version of the PTSD checklist-military version (PCL-M) – II : Diagnostic utility
(2015) In Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria 37(1). p.55-62- Abstract
Objective: War veterans are at high risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the development of brief self-report instruments that enable screening for PTSD in this population is crucial. The PTSD Checklist-Military Version (PCL-M) is widely used for this purpose. This study sought to explore the diagnostic utility of the Portuguese version of the PCL-M. Methods: The participants were 86 Portuguese Colonial War veterans (42 with a PTSD diagnosis and 44 without PTSD). Participants completed a self-report instrument designed to collect sociodemographic data, the PCL-M, and the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Results: The area under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve showed excellent discriminant... (More)
Objective: War veterans are at high risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the development of brief self-report instruments that enable screening for PTSD in this population is crucial. The PTSD Checklist-Military Version (PCL-M) is widely used for this purpose. This study sought to explore the diagnostic utility of the Portuguese version of the PCL-M. Methods: The participants were 86 Portuguese Colonial War veterans (42 with a PTSD diagnosis and 44 without PTSD). Participants completed a self-report instrument designed to collect sociodemographic data, the PCL-M, and the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Results: The area under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve showed excellent discriminant ability between subjects with and without PTSD (AUC = 0.94). To achieve a positive PTSD diagnosis, an optimal cutoff point of 49 for the PCL-M total score and cutoff points for each of its 17 items are recommended. Conclusions: This work is a relevant contribution for research and clinical practice in the vast population of Portuguese Colonial War veterans. Use of the PCL-M as a screening tool for PTSD symptoms will allow easier, resource-aware targeting of subjects with a potential PTSD diagnosis, adding to the improvement of public health in Portugal.
(Less)
- author
- Carvalho, Teresa ; Pinto-Gouveia, José ; Cunha, Marina and Duarte, Joana LU
- publishing date
- 2015
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Diagnosis and classification, Military psychiatry, Posttraumatic stress disorder, Psychometric, Statistics, Tests/interviews
- in
- Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria
- volume
- 37
- issue
- 1
- pages
- 8 pages
- publisher
- Associacao Brasileira de Psiquiatria
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:25028779
- scopus:84941960432
- ISSN
- 1516-4446
- DOI
- 10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1319
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- additional info
- Publisher Copyright: © 2015 Associação Brasileira de Psiquiatria.
- id
- f0afd59c-e5e3-4a14-a523-1fc3fee7fb91
- date added to LUP
- 2021-11-19 12:57:08
- date last changed
- 2025-07-14 09:12:21
@article{f0afd59c-e5e3-4a14-a523-1fc3fee7fb91,
abstract = {{<p>Objective: War veterans are at high risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the development of brief self-report instruments that enable screening for PTSD in this population is crucial. The PTSD Checklist-Military Version (PCL-M) is widely used for this purpose. This study sought to explore the diagnostic utility of the Portuguese version of the PCL-M. Methods: The participants were 86 Portuguese Colonial War veterans (42 with a PTSD diagnosis and 44 without PTSD). Participants completed a self-report instrument designed to collect sociodemographic data, the PCL-M, and the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Results: The area under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve showed excellent discriminant ability between subjects with and without PTSD (AUC = 0.94). To achieve a positive PTSD diagnosis, an optimal cutoff point of 49 for the PCL-M total score and cutoff points for each of its 17 items are recommended. Conclusions: This work is a relevant contribution for research and clinical practice in the vast population of Portuguese Colonial War veterans. Use of the PCL-M as a screening tool for PTSD symptoms will allow easier, resource-aware targeting of subjects with a potential PTSD diagnosis, adding to the improvement of public health in Portugal.</p>}},
author = {{Carvalho, Teresa and Pinto-Gouveia, José and Cunha, Marina and Duarte, Joana}},
issn = {{1516-4446}},
keywords = {{Diagnosis and classification; Military psychiatry; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Psychometric; Statistics; Tests/interviews}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{1}},
pages = {{55--62}},
publisher = {{Associacao Brasileira de Psiquiatria}},
series = {{Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria}},
title = {{Portuguese version of the PTSD checklist-military version (PCL-M) – II : Diagnostic utility}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1319}},
doi = {{10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1319}},
volume = {{37}},
year = {{2015}},
}