Using the drug abuse screening test (DAST-10) to analyze health services utilization and cost for substance users in a community-based setting.

The dual purpose of this study was to: (1) determine whether problematic drug users, defined through the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-10), exhibited differences in health services utilization and cost relative to a combined group of non-problematic drug users and non-drug users; and (2) assess whether the findings were similar to those for chronic drug users (CDUs) and injecting drug users (IDUs). Results showed that health services utilization and total cost were very similar for problematic drug users defined through quantity-frequency (i.e., CDU, IDU) and diagnostic (i.e., DAST-10) criteria. Findings suggest that quantity/frequency criteria for problematic drug use were reasonable approximations for diagnostic-based measures.