K-CAT-SUD-E: Revolutionizing Adolescent Substance Use Assessment

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K-CAT SUD-E Study Details

CHICAGO, IL, UNITED STATES, September 10, 2024 /EINPresswire / -- The K-CAT® is a suite of computerized adaptive tests (CATs) validated to assess youth aged 7 to 17 for a variety of mental health problems in order to help identify areas most at risk and help improve overall outcomes. One of the features of the K-CAT® is that it includes a child substance use disorder module that assesses for cannabis, nicotine/tobacco, alcohol, stimulants, opioids, sedatives, hallucinogens, and inhalants. In a groundbreaking study conducted by researchers at Indiana University, the substance use portion of the K-CAT®️, K-CAT-SUD-E, emerged as a game-changer in adolescent mental health assessment. This CAT offers a rapid and accurate solution for diagnosing Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) in adolescents, addressing critical gaps in identification and intervention.

Study Highlights:

Efficiency and Accuracy: K-CAT-SUD-E demonstrated classification accuracy ranging from excellent to outstanding for both current and lifetime SUD diagnoses across nine substance classes. Notably, the tool's accuracy rivaled the gold-standard clinician-conducted diagnostic interview (K-SADS) while significantly reducing completion time.

Quick and Remote Assessment: With a median completion time of 4 minutes and 22 seconds, K-CAT-SUD-E outpaced traditional assessments, making it an ideal choice for swift and remote substance use evaluations.

Significance for Adolescent Mental Health:

Closing the Treatment Gap: Adolescents with SUDs often face a treatment gap contingent on in-person clinician assessment. K-CAT-SUD-E offers a feasible and accurate solution to bridge this gap, providing timely identification and intervention based on access to any web-capable device.

Versatile Application: The tool's adaptability makes it suitable for use in various settings, including academic, juvenile justice, and primary care, while aligning with the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) model.

Enhanced Reliability: K-CAT-SUD-E's self-administration feature addresses underreporting concerns in clinical settings, allowing adolescents to comfortably report sensitive information using electronic devices on their own time.

K-CAT-SUD-E is poised to revolutionize adolescent mental health assessment, offering a timely, effective, and reliable solution for identifying and quantifying SUD symptoms. This study encourages further validation in larger adolescent samples, and future research should explore feasibility at scale in diverse youth-serving settings. This innovation in SUD assessment represents a commitment to advancing scientific knowledge and improving healthcare outcomes.

Read the Full Study Here


About Adaptive Testing Technologies:
Developers of the CAT-MH® and K-CAT®, the first and only validated, comprehensive, multidimensional item response theory based adaptive mental health screening and measurement system. These tools provide levels of precision and accuracy far beyond what can be achieved using traditional fixed-length mental health assessment scales that can be administered anywhere at any frequency, in or out of a clinical setting, to any sized population. Our tools are used by federal and state government agencies, hospitals and clinics throughout the U.S.

Contact: Hannah Wulczyn
Adaptive Testing Technologies
+1 312-878-6490 ext. 505
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