Major depression in adolescents is recognized as a serious psychiatric illness with extensive acute and chronic morbidity and mortality. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) research shows that only 50% of adolescents with depression are diagnosed before reaching adulthood. As many as two in three youth with depression are not identified by their primary care providers and fail to receive any kind of care.
This is a reminder of the importance of universal annual screening of adolescents age 12 and older for depression and suicide risk as outlined in the Bright Futures/AAP Periodicity Schedule. Although MO HealthNet Division does not endorse any particular screening tool, one commonly used tool that is available in the public domain is the PHQ-9: Modified for Teens. For further information about depression screening tools, providers may download the Guidelines for Adolescent Depression in Primary Care (GLAD-PC) Toolkit.