Geriatric Depression Scale Calculator
GDS-15 depression screening for elderly with severity classification, treatment recommendations, and risk assessment.
About this calculator
The Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form (GDS-15), condensed by Sheikh and Yesavage in 1986 from Yesavage's original 30-item scale, is a validated 15-item yes/no depression screening tool built specifically for older adults. It deliberately focuses on mood, motivation, and outlook rather than the somatic complaints -- sleep, appetite, energy -- that overlap with normal aging and chronic illness and can inflate scores on general-population depression scales. This calculator groups the 15 items into four domains -- life satisfaction/enjoyment, social withdrawal, hopelessness, and cognitive complaints -- and asks how many items in each domain were answered in the depressive direction, rather than walking through all 15 questions one at a time. Entering the domain counts reproduces the standard 0-15 GDS-15 total and its four standard severity bands: 0-4 normal, 5-8 mild depression, 9-11 moderate depression, 12-15 severe depression.
Beyond the validated score, it layers in several unvalidated, illustrative estimates: a suicide-risk screening flag driven by a high total combined with a high hopelessness-domain count, a rough PHQ-9 cross-walk that scales the GDS-15 total by 1.8, a suggested treatment level, and contextual-risk and functional-impact scores that fold in chronic pain, recent bereavement, social support, and age. Patient age does not change the core GDS-15 total, its severity band, or the PHQ-9 estimate at all -- it only nudges the supplementary contextual-risk score, and even there its effect is dominated by the social-support term at this calculator's own defaults. None of the supplementary numbers are validated clinical instruments in their own right; they exist to add context around a validated score, not to replace clinical judgment, a full suicide-risk assessment, or a structured diagnostic interview for a possible mood disorder.
Medical Disclaimer
This calculator is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about your health. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of results from this tool.
Inputs
Results
GDS-15 total (0-15)
0
Figures current as of 1986. Source: Sheikh JI, Yesavage JA. Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS): recent evidence and development of a shorter version. Clin Gerontol. 1986;5(1-2):165-173.
How to Use This Calculator
- Answer each yes/no item on the Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form (15 items), grouped here into four domain counts: life satisfaction, social withdrawal, hopelessness, and cognitive complaints.
- Score items in the depression-indicative direction per the validated GDS-SF scoring key.
- Review the GDS-15 total — scores of 5 or higher suggest probable depression.
- Check the severity classification: normal (0–4), mild depression (5–8), moderate depression (9–11), or severe depression (12–15).
- Use the score, along with the contextual and functional-impact estimates, to guide mental health referral and treatment planning for older adults.
What each input means
- Life satisfaction items (0-5)
- Count of depressive answers (GDS-15 items 1, 5, 7, 11, 13 — 'No' is depressive for each): not satisfied with life, not in good spirits most of the time, not happy most of the time, doesn't think it's wonderful to be alive now, not full of energy.
- Social withdrawal items (0-4)
- Count of depressive answers (GDS-15 items 2, 3, 4, 9): dropped many activities and interests, feels that life is empty, often gets bored, prefers to stay home rather than going out and doing new things.
- Hopelessness items (0-4)
- Count of depressive answers (GDS-15 items 8, 12, 14, 15): often feels helpless, feels pretty worthless, feels that their situation is hopeless, thinks most people are better off than they are.
- Fear & cognitive items (0-2)
- Count of depressive answers (GDS-15 items 6, 10): afraid something bad is going to happen, feels they have more problems with memory than most.
- Age
- Patient age in years.
- Chronic Pain
- Has chronic pain condition.
- Recent Bereavement
- Major loss within past 6 months.
- Social Support
- Social support network level.
What each result means
- GDS-15 total (0-15)
- 0-4 = Normal, 5-8 = Mild depression, 9-11 = Moderate, 12-15 = Severe.
- Severity (1-4)
- 1 = Normal, 2 = Mild, 3 = Moderate, 4 = Severe depression.
- Suicide screen flag
- 1 = Elevated risk — further assessment recommended, 0 = Below threshold.
- PHQ-9 equivalent estimate
- Approximate PHQ-9 cross-walk score (0-27) for clinical comparison.
- Treatment level (1-4)
- 1 = Monitoring, 2 = Psychotherapy, 3 = Psychotherapy + medication consideration, 4 = Urgent evaluation needed.
- Contextual risk score
- Risk adjusted for chronic pain, bereavement, social support, and age (0-100).
- Functional impact score
- Estimated impact on daily functioning (0-100).
- GDS-5 estimate (0-5)
- Ultra-short form approximation. >= 2 suggests depression.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersLife satisfaction items (0-5) = 0, Social withdrawal items (0-4) = 0, Hopelessness items (0-4) = 0, Fear & cognitive items (0-2) = 0 = 8 input(s) provided
- Calculate GDS-15 totalGDS-15 total0 = 0
- Calculate Severity1 = 1
- Calculate Suicide screen flagSuicide screen flag0 = 0
Figures and sources
- Geriatric Depression Scale Short Form (GDS-15) (1986) — Sheikh JI, Yesavage JA. Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS): recent evidence and development of a shorter version. Clin Gerontol. 1986;5(1-2):165-173.
Engine last updated . Checked against 3 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why doesn't a patient's age change the GDS-15 total?
The GDS-15 total is purely the sum of depressive answers across the four item domains -- life satisfaction, social withdrawal, hopelessness, and cognitive complaints -- and age is never added into that sum. Age only feeds the separate, unvalidated contextual-risk estimate below the core score, where it adds a small bump past 85; it never adjusts the validated GDS-15 total or its severity band.
What does the suicide screen flag actually check?
It flags elevated risk when the GDS-15 total is 10 or higher and the hopelessness domain has 3 or more depressive answers, or independently whenever the total reaches the severe band (12-15). It is a coarse screening trigger built from this tool's own domain counts, not a validated suicide-risk instrument, and a flag of 0 does not rule out risk that a clinical interview would catch.
How is the PHQ-9 equivalent estimate calculated?
It multiplies the GDS-15 total by 1.8 and rounds, giving a rough proportional cross-walk from the GDS-15's 0-15 range to the PHQ-9's 0-27 range for clinicians more familiar with PHQ-9 scoring. The two instruments ask different questions and were validated separately, so this is a convenience approximation for comparison, not an actual PHQ-9 result.
What's the difference between the GDS-15 total and the GDS-5 estimate?
The published GDS-5 (Hoyl et al. 1999) uses items 1, 4, 8, 9, and 12 of the GDS-15, with a score of 2 or higher suggesting depression. This calculator only records domain-level counts rather than answers to those five items individually, so the GDS-5 estimate is a derived approximation -- it spreads each domain's depressive-answer count evenly across that domain's own items to estimate how many of the five GDS-5 items would likely be positive, not a separately administered short form. The GDS-15 total remains the validated score; treat the GDS-5 figure as a secondary sanity check.
Why does more social support lower the contextual risk score?
Stronger social support is subtracted from the contextual-risk score (5 points per support level, 0-3), reflecting that older adults with more social connection generally face lower depression risk at a given symptom level, a pattern well documented in geriatric depression literature. At this calculator's default settings that subtraction is large enough that even the age-85+ risk bump does not push the contextual score above zero.
Related Calculators
The questions that sit next to this one — chosen by subject, including calculators filed under a different category.
Cognitive Screening Score Calculator
Mini-Cog screening with clock drawing, word recall, and estimated MMSE equivalent for cognitive impairment detection.
Geriatric HealthCaregiver Burden Score Calculator
Zarit Burden Interview-based scoring for caregiver stress, burnout risk, and intervention urgency.
Geriatric HealthNutritional Risk (Elderly) Calculator
MNA Short Form screening for malnutrition in older adults with caloric and protein recommendations.
Mental HealthPHQ-9 Depression Calculator
Score the PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) to assess depression severity and guide treatment recommendations.
Womens HealthPostpartum Depression Screening Calculator
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) scoring tool to screen for postpartum depression symptoms.
More in Medical & Clinical.