The Maudsley 3-item Visual Analogue Scale (M3VAS) Validation in Polish Population Diagnosed With Major Depressive Episode

Low mood and anhedonia represent the fundamental symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD). Nevertheless, there is currently no standardized visual analogue scale available to assess the extent of both symptoms concurrently. The Maudsley 3-item Visual Analogue Scale (M3VAS) is a newly developed tool for participants to self-assess core symptoms of depression: mood quality, pleasure experience (anhedonia), and suicidality. Despite suicidality not being a primary symptom, it is included due to its critical relevance to safety. Participants will be instructed to rate the intensity and frequency of their experiences over the preceding two weeks by marking a 100 mm ungraded line. A researcher will then assign a numerical value based on the mark's position, utilizing the left edge as 0 and the right as 100. The total score range, combining the three symptoms, ranged from 0 (minimum) to 300 (maximum). The M3VAS exhibited good psychometric properties in British population. In this study, the objective is to assess the psychometric properties of the scale within the Polish population diagnosed with major depressive episode within major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder.