Withdrawal tools aim to identify severity of withdrawal from a particular substance. According to DSM-5, “withdrawal may be manifested as the characteristic withdrawal syndrome for the substance of interest, and/or if the same (or a closely related) substance is taken to relieve or avoid withdrawal”.
The 16 item Amphetamine Cessation Symptom Assessment (ACSA) is a clinician rating tool for assessing the severity of amphetamine withdrawal symptoms.
The 10 item Amphetamine Withdrawal Questionnaire (AWQ) is a clinician rating tool for assessing the severity of amphetamine withdrawal symptoms.
The 10 item Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment for Alcohol – Revised (CIWA-Ar) is a clinician rating tool for assessing and monitoring alcohol withdrawal.
The 22 item Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment – Benzodiazepine (CIWA-B) is a clinician rating tool for assessing and monitoring the severity of benzodiazepine withdrawal.
The Objective Opiate Withdrawal Scale (OOWS) is a 13 item clinical rating tool for assessing and monitoring opiate withdrawal symptoms. The OOWS has been designed to complement the SOWS.
For more information, please refer to the original article: Handelsman L, Cochrane KJ, Aronson MJ, Ness R, Rubinstein KJ, Kanof PD. 'Two new rating scales for opiate withdrawal'. The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse. 1987 Jan 1;13(3):293-308. Available at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/00952998709001515
The 16 item Subjective Opiate Withdrawal Scale (SOWS) is a client-reported assessment of the presence and intensity of opiate withdrawal symptoms. The SOWS is designed to complement the OOWS.
For more information, please refer to the original article: Handelsman L, Cochrane KJ, Aronson MJ, Ness R, Rubinstein KJ, Kanof PD. 'Two new rating scales for opiate withdrawal'. The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse. 1987 Jan 1;13(3):293-308. Available at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.3109/00952998709001515
The 19 item Cannabis Withdrawal Scale (CWS) is a client-reported assessment of cannabis withdrawal symptoms.
For more information about the CWS, please see: Allsop, D., Norberg, M., Copeland, J., et al. The Cannabis Withdrawal Scale development: patterns and predictors of cannabis withdrawal and distress. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2011. 119(1-2): 123-129. available at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376871611002663
The 11 item Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) is a clinician rating tool for assessing and monitoring opioid withdrawal symptoms.
For more information about the COWS, please see: Wesson, D.R. and Ling, W. The Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS). Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 2003. 35(2): 253-259. available at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02791072.2003.10400007