Variables predictive of the need for placement in a long-term structured setting for adolescents.

A retrospective study of 113 adolescent patients admitted to a short-term unit revealed that family history of drug abuse, behavior problems in females, history of previous inpatient hospitalization diagnosed under a DSM-III category of disorders usually first evident in childhood or adolescence, grade level, symptom of drug experimentation, elopement, and family involvement in treatment were significant variables distinguishing the patients who returned to the community at the end of short-term stay versus those who required continued treatment in a structured residential setting.