An Innovative Mobile Game for Screening of Pediatric PTSD: a Study in Primary Care Settings

Abstract

Childhood is a developmental period associated with high risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Available validated pencil-and-paper diagnostic tools can be difficult for younger children to engage with given format and length. This study investigated psychometric properties of a briefer, more interactive game version of the Child PTSD Symptom Scale for DSM-5 (CPSS-5). Participants ( n \u2009=\u200949) were children attending primary care appointments between 8 to 12\xa0years of age who were exposed to a DSM-5 Criterion A trauma. Participants completed the 6-item screening version of the CPSS-5 delivered in mobile tablet game format (the CPSS-5 Screen Team Game) and a self-report version of the full CPSS-5 (CPSS-5-SR) before their medical appointments. The mobile game showed adequate internal consistency (α\u2009=\u20090.79), was significantly positively correlated to the total CPSS-5-SR ( r \u2009=\u2009.74, p \u2009<\u2009.001, n \u2009=\u200949), and with the total of the six identical items of the CPSS-5-SR ( r \u2009=\u2009.79, p \u2009<\u2009.001, n\u2009=\u200949), demonstrating good convergent validity. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses revealed a cut-off score of 9 on the screening game as indicative of probable PTSD. Implementation of this screening game into primary care settings could be a low-burden method to greatly increase the detection of pediatric PTSD for referral to appropriate integrated care interventions.