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The CRAFFT test was accurate for screening for substance abuse among adolescent clinic patients

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QUESTION: What is the accuracy of the CRAFFT test in screening for substance abuse among adolescents in a hospital based clinic?

Design

Blinded comparison of the CRAFFT test with a substance use/abuse problem scale and a structured psychiatric diagnostic interview.

Setting

A large, hospital based adolescent clinic in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Participants

538 adolescents between the ages of 14 and 18 years (68% girls) attending the clinic for routine medical care. Exclusion criteria were inability to read or understand English, or acute medical or psychiatric problems.

Description of test and diagnostic standards

The 6 item CRAFFT test (table 1) was administered verbally and the responses to the 6 yes/no questions were recorded. 2 scales were administered concurrently for criterion validity. The first diagnostic standard …

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Footnotes

  • For correspondence: Dr J R Knight, Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research, Children’s Hospital Boston, Boston, MA, USA. john.knight{at}tch.harvard.edu

  • Sources of funding: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.