GLASGOW is to pilot a revolutionary addict therapy scheme involving the whole family.

It's the first city in the UK to pilot Multidimensional Family Therapy, developed at Miami University in Florida.

The programme is being tested by Glasgow Addiction Services and focuses largely on youngsters aged 12 to 18.

It involves therapy for the addict and their entire family.

The agency is trying to establish whether the treatment - which is recognised internationally as among the best ways to treat substance-abusing youngsters - can be transferred to a UK setting.

If so, it is expected to be rolled out across the city and used alongside traditional methods to help young people with a range of addictions.

Around 1000 young people with substance abuse problems are treated a year by Glasgow Addiction Services.

Ten city youth addiction workers and up to 40 families are taking part in the scheme.

The agency was invited to participate in the programme by Miami University's Centre for Treatment Research on Adolescent Drug Abuse in partnership with Glasgow University's Centre for Drug Misuse Research.

Professor Cindy Rowe from Miami University, who travels to Glasgow regularly to train staff, said the system had so far appeared to have transferred well.

She added: "The drug of choice may be different in different parts of the world. But no matter what the addiction is, the core processes involved appear to be universal."