section name header

Evidence summaries

The Validity of the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (Mast)

The negative predictive value may be high, the sensitivity is acceptable, and the positive predictive value and the specificity show substantial variation. Level of evidence: "C"

A systematic review 1 included 20 studies. The MAST, compared with other diagnostic criteria of alcohol problems (e.g. the DSMII), gave validity measures in the following ranges:

- Predictive positive value 0.24 to 0.96

- Predictive negative value 0.78 to 1

- Sensitivity 0.36 to 1

- Specificity 0.36 to 0.96.

    References

    • Storgaard H, Nielsen SD, Gluud C. The validity of the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST). Alcohol Alcohol 1994 Sep;29(5):493-502. [PubMed]

Primary/Secondary Keywords