Abstract
ABSTRACT Objective: To measure the prevalence of illicit drugs use in the lifetime, last year and last month, as well as the factors associated to the last year's use and its association with academic migration, among undergraduate students of a university in southern Brazil. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, data were collected through self-administered questionnaire. It was conducted a clustered systematic sampling. For multivariate analyses, it was used Poisson regression. Results: 1,423 students participated. The prevalence of illicit drug use in the lifetime, last year and last month were 42.4%, 25.5% and 17.7%, respectively. Regarding illicit substances, marijuana use was the most prevalent. The variables independently associated with illicit drugs use in the last year were academic migration, being male, younger, single, high parent's educational level, living with peers, tobacco use in the last year, and having friend and relative that have used illicit drugs. Religious practice had a protective effect. Conclusion: Individuals who migrated from their cities to study at the university are more exposed to the main risk factors pointed out by this research and hence to the use of illicit drugs. Based on these results, we suggest that universities develop evaluation, prevention, treatment or referral strategies considering specific needs of this population
Highlights
In 2014, one in every 20 adults around the world used at least one illicit drug, and is estimated that globally 29 million people suffer from some kind of drug-related disorder and that more than 200 thousand deaths are associated with this use[1]
Researches with university students indicates that male, younger, smokers and those with friends who use drugs are more susceptible to the use of illicit drugs[3,5,6,7,8]
We found that almost half of respondents migrated from their cities to study at the university, which might be a possible reflection of admission process through ENEM
Summary
In 2014, one in every 20 adults around the world used at least one illicit drug, and is estimated that globally 29 million people suffer from some kind of drug-related disorder and that more than 200 thousand deaths are associated with this use[1]. In Brazil, prevalence of illicit drug use in the last year was 15.5% among adults aged 18 or over[2]. This frequency is even higher in the university context, reaching 35.8%3. Researches with university students indicates that male, younger, smokers and those with friends who use drugs are more susceptible to the use of illicit drugs[3,5,6,7,8]. Those living with relatives and with religious practices showed a lower risk for this behavior[5,9]
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