Multidimensional voiceprint feature assessment system for identifying the depression in children and adolescents: a diagnostic test

Objective: We designed a diagnostic test to evaluate the effectiveness and accuracy of a multidimensional voiceprint feature diagnostic assessment (MVFDA) system vs. the 24-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD-24) for adjunctive diagnosis of children and adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD). Methods: This study included 55 children aged 6–16 years who were clinically diagnosed with MDD according to the DSM-5 and analyzed by professional physicians, and 55 healthy children (typically developing). Each subject completed a voice recording and was scored on the HAMD-24 scale by a trained rater. We calculated the validity indices, including sensitivity, specificity, Youden's index, likelihood ratio, and other indices including predictive value, diagnostic odds ratio, diagnostic accuracy, and area under the curve (AUC), to assess the effectiveness of the MVFDA system in addition to the HAMD-24. Results: The sensitivity (92.73 vs. 76.36%) and the specificity (90.91 vs. 85.45%) of the MVFDA system are significantly higher than those of the HAMD-24. The AUC of the MVFDA system is also higher than that of the HAMD-24. There is a statistically significant difference between the groups (p < 0.05), and both of them have high diagnostic accuracy. In addition, the diagnostic efficacy of the MVFDA system is higher than that of HAMD-24 in terms of the Youden index, diagnostic accuracy, likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio, and predictive value. Conclusion: The MVFDA has performed well in clinical diagnostic trials for the identification of MDD in children and adolescents by capturing objective sound features. Compared with the scale assessment method, the MVFDA system could be further promoted in clinical practice due to its advantages of simple operation, objective rating, and high diagnostic efficiency.