Kessler-10

Question 1

What is the K-10 used for?

Answer 1

The K-10 is a brief measure of psychological distressed, and yields a global measure of distress based on questions about different disorder symptoms experienced in the most recent 4 week period.

Question 2

Who uses the K-10?

Answer 2

• Primarily GPs when using a MHTP

- Can also be used in ABS health surveys

Question 3

What disorder symptoms are screened in the K10?

Answer 3

• Depression/dysthmia
• Bipolar
• Panic
• Social phobia
• Agoraphobia
• GAD
• OCD
• PTSD

Question 4

How is the K-10 administered?

Answer 4

The K-10 is a self-report 10-item questionnaire. With 5-level responses based on frequency of symptoms:
1=none of the time
2=a little of the time
3=some of the time
4=most of the time
5=all of the time

Maximum score = 50

Question 5

What is the primary care cut-off in the K-10 for those likely to have some mental disorder?

Answer 5

20+ = likely to have a mental disorder (with higher scores increasing in severity)

10-19 = likely to be well.