[Toxicologic approach to the clinical aspects of drug dependence: rational choice of dependence evaluation scales].

Fast but reliable approaches to evaluate the dependence syndrome to psychoactive substances are needed, particularly in those environmental conditions that do not allow a long interview with the drug addict. In this direction, easy to be administered questionnaires have been recently proposed. We used some of these questionnaires, such as SDS (severity of dependence scale) CAGE (cut down, annoyed, guilty, eye-opener) and VAS (visual analogical scales) in association with scales for clinical quantitation of alcohol and opiate withdrawal syndrome, to study a sample of 87 heroin addicts. Answers obtained were compared with clinical examination data and specific laboratory determinations. Our preliminary results demonstrate that the use of fast evaluation scales represents a reliable approach to estimate the dependence syndrome as well as to identify pharmacological therapies to be administered.