The most popular method for monitoring depression is
significantly flawed and needs replacement. So says R. Michael
Bagby, clinical research director at the University of Toronto's
Center for Addiction and Mental Health. Although the Hamilton
Depression Rating Scale, developed in 1960, has long been a
"gold standard" in psychiatric evaluation, Bagby says its
shortcomings are well noted. Bagby was the lead researcher of a
metastudy that analyzed 70 independent research papers on the
Hamilton scale's efficacy published since the last major review
in 1979. The study was funded in part by Eli Lilly and the
Ontario Mental Health Foundation. Bagby says one of the scale's
greatest problems is poor sensitivity to changes in a depressed
individual's condition. This shortcoming makes it difficult to
accurately monitor whether a patient is improving or declining
and also confuses the approval of new antidepressant drugs,
because the scale is a benchmark in judging their efficacy
during clinical trials. Furthermore, the