Psychoactive Substances Use among In-patients in a Nigerian Neuropsychiatric Hospital: Prevalence, Pattern and Presentation

Abstract

1.      Abstract 1.1.Objectives:To determine the extent of drug abuse, to identify common drugs of abuse among psychiatric patients in a Nigerian hospital, to determine the duration of exposure to substances prior to presentation for treatment, to identify the common mental and behavioral problems leading to admission. 1.2.Design:A cross-sectional descriptive study. 1.3.Setting:The study was carried out at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital Kware, Sokoto State and north-western Nigeria. 1.4.Participants:One hundred and four inpatients (104) were interviewed. Ethical approval was obtained before the commencement of the study. 1.5.Main outcomes measure:Self-report questionnaire on substance use. Analysis was done using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS), version 20. 1.6.Results: The lifetime prevalence of substance abuse among the patients on admission was 69.2%. Active abuse of drugs (during the last month prior to admission) was reported in 43 (41%). Common drugs of abuse were cannabis 39 (90.7%), the cough syrup, Tutolin/Codeine 35 (81.4%) and Solvents/Inhalants, a tire repair solvent 30 (69.8%). The mean duration of substance abuse prior to presentation was 7.1±4.3 years. The common mental and behavioral symptoms at presentation were poor sleep (93%), physical/verbal aggression (74.4%) and aimless wandering (51.2%). Conclusion:The lifetime prevalence of drug use was quite high among psychiatric patients in this hospital. The abuse of cannabis, codeine syrup and solvents/inhalants still remain a great challenge among patients of the hospital. Most of the patients present for treatment after long duration of abuse when dependence on the drug has developed leading to difficulty in management. We recommend that routine screening and brief interventions for substance use should be critical components of mental health service delivery in psychiatric facilities.