The Davidson Trauma Scale (DTS) is a well-established self-rating measure to assess the frequency and severity of PTSD symptoms as defined in DSM-IV. There is an extensive bibliography on the scale. The scale has demonstrated the ability to grade levels of symptom severity and to measure the impact of treatment. This includes the capacity to differentiate between treatments of different potency.

Here are the principal references describing the development of this scale:

Davidson JR, Book SW, Colket JT, et al. Assessment of a new self-rating scale for post-traumatic stress disorder. Psychol Med. 1997; 27:153-160.

Meltzer-Brody S, Churchill E, Davidson JR. Derivation of the SPAN, a brief diagnostic screening test for post-traumatic stress disorder. Psychiatry Res. 1999; 88: 63-70.

Distribution and marketing of the scale is handled by MultiHealth Systems (MHS) Inc.

Further information on the Davidson Trauma Scale can be found at http://www.mhs.com/.

To learn more about post-traumatic stress, visit the NIMH page on the topic.