- A self-reported tool for craving 
- Example Opioid Craving Scale - includes three questions each rated on a 0–10 visual analog scale 
- May offer improved reliability and sensitivity compared with single-item
scales 
- However, can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and lead to patient disengagement and demotivation

Multi-Item Scale 

- A self-reported tool for craving 
- Uses easy to understand using Likert ratings or visual analog scales to indicate the degree of craving

Single-Item Scales 

- Can be limited by the ceiling and floor effects (the scale has artificial limitations at either extreme)
- This may prevent distinguishing true differences in craving between patients 
- Includes single-item scales and multi-item scales 


Rutgers University

- Measures of craving can be divided into observational and self-reported 
- Ecological momentary assessments (EMA) is a newer approach to assess cravings 


Craving Assessment Tools 

Kakko J, Alho H, Baldacchino A, Molina R, Nava FA and Shaya G
 2019) Craving in Opioid Use Disorder: From Neurobiology to Clinical Practice.Front. Psychiatry 10:592. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00592

Craving in Opioid Use Disorder: From Neurobiology to Clinical Practice

- Rely on proxy measures
- Avoids self-reporting bias and any communication challenges 
- Less dependent on the conscious experience of craving and may capture
unconscious craving impulses instead 
- However, can be challenging to implement in clinical practice and
may reflect more than just craving 

Observational Tools

Self Reported Tools 

- Recently, ecological momentary assessments (EMA) have been used to assess cravings 
- EMA involves the patient recording real-time assessments of
craving using mobile technology 
- EMA has the potential to enhance the understanding of craving, particularly in regard to temporal fluctuations, and treatment dosing

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