Prevalence Of Substance Abuse Research Articles

PREVALENCE OF DRUG ABUSE IN CHILDREN IN DAMIETTA GOVERNORATE FROM THE 1st OF MAY 2015 TO 1st OF JANUARY 2017

Background: The direct and indirect effects of substance of abuse on children lead to many adverse health and safety risks for the child, family and community. Patterns of drug abuse in children are determined not only by the availability and cost of different substances, but also by the dynamics and differences within groups, cultures and age groups. There is increasing awareness that the abuse of drugs by parents and other caregivers can have a good impact on the safety, permanence and well-being of children. Objective: The purpose of this study was to shed light on the prevalence of drug of abuse in children in toxicology unit in Damietta governorate from the 1st of May 2015 to 1st of January 2017. Subjects and Methods: A total of 100 abused child were detected to estimate the prevalence of drug abuse in children in Toxicology unit Al-Azhar University Hospital (New Damietta) from the 1st of May 2015 to 1st of January 2017, in addition to 20 healthy volunteers as a control group. Within one hour after arrival to emergency room, blood samples were drawn in sodium fluoride (NaF) contained tubes. Then, it was kept at 4-8 oC for subsequent test, using radioimmunoassay strips as a preliminary test, and a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) as a confirmatory test. The status of electrolytes, hemoglobin (Hb), liver and renal function tests, and alkaline phosphatase level were evaluated at the same time of screening the substance abuse. Cases and controls were subjected to full medical history with stressing on age, sex, smoking, behaviors, difficult temperament and the psychoactive drugs used during the previous month. This was in addition to clinical examination with special attention to neurological examination and Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). Results: The most common drugs abuse in children were tramadol (90.0%) followed by both cannabis and drugs- co-administration (50.0%), anti-psychotic drugs (30.0%), benzodiazepines (26.0%), antihistamines (13.0%), amphetamine (10.0%), then antidepressants and cough suppressants (5.0%). In control group, tramadol was also the most common drugs abuse (35.0%) followed by cough suppressants (30.0%), cannabis (25.0%), anti-psychotic drugs, benzodiazepines and drugs- co-administration (20.0% for each one), then followed by antihistamines and antidepressants (10.0% for each one). There was a significant difference in tramadol, cannabis, cough suppressants, and drugs-co administration in the study group in comparison to control group. Conclusion: Tramadol is the most common drug abuse in children in Toxicology Unit in Damietta Governorate, followed by both cannabis and drugs- co-administration, anti-psychotic drugs benzodiazepines, antihistamines, amphetamine, then both antidepressants and cough suppressants respectively.

Epidemiology of Substance Abuse Among Iranian Adolescents (Yazd: 2014)

Background: Substance abuse in adolescents and its outcomes is one of the important public health concerns. Objectives: The present study aimed at estimating the prevalence of substance abuse and evaluating some of its associated factors in Iranian adolescents. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 730 randomly selected students with a mean age of 17.6 ± 0.61 years during a cross sectional study in Yazd, a central province of Iran, during 2014. The aim of the questionnaire was to obtain information on substance abuse and socioeconomic information. Logistic regression model and Chi-square, or Fisher exact test were used for statistical analysis using SPSS; and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The highest frequency of one time and more than one time drug usage among students pertained to hookah 41.1% and 31.1%, cigarette 17.5% and 8.1%, alcohol 10.8% and 7.5%, Opiates 4.1% and 0.8%, hashish, bang or marijuana 1.9% and 0.7%, stimulants and hallucinogens 3.4% and 0.8%, and glue and lighter gas 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively. Based on the results in logistic regression models, male gender (AOR:3.02), mathematical physics (AOR:1.8), hookah and alcohol experience (AOR:14.4 and 3.4) for regular smoking in Model 1; male gender(AOR:2.7), cigarette and hookah experience (AOR:3.2 and 7.6) for ever use of alcohol in Model 2; and male gender (AOR:2.5), mathematics course studding (AOR:1.6), poor educational condition (AOR:1.7), high level of father education (AOR:3.9), and tranquilizer experience (AOR:5.8) for ever use of illicit drugs in Model 3 were considered as predicting factors. For all the above- mentioned, p-values were less than 0.05. Conclusions: In the present study, it was found that drug abuse is at a warning rate. The findings pointed to the need for interventional plans to improve adolescents’ health with regards to substance abuse. Conducting more studies on this population is necessary to approve the observed results of the present study.

Study of Substance Abuse by Street Children in Jaipur City, Rajasthan

Objective: Street children are a highly mobile population and difficult to reach. They are recognized to be vulnerable to substance, physical and sexual abuse. Most of the studies on street children were conducted either in observation homes or via surveys, our objective was to conduct a study among street children of Jaipur City to assess substance abuse and the factors associated with them. Material and method: The present study was observation and the population consisted of children between 5-15 years of age living on the streets of Jaipur city. Result: In the study population three most common reasons observed for starting substance use were peer pressure, increase in confidence, and out of curiosity i.e. 31.5%, 21.2% and 19.6% respectively. Rest 10.3%, 9.8% and 4.9% were using them to feel elated, to forget sorrows and to decrease hunger respectively. Conclusion: In the present study, the overall prevalence of substance use was 46.0% & majority of them (86.4%) had family history of substance use. The most critical age for using substance was 9-13years.More than half of the children had habit of smoking cigarette/bidi (58.2%) and chewing tobacco (56.5%). Key words: Prevalence of Drug Abuse, Factors, Drug of Abuse, Children, India

Psychosocial profile of institutionalised street children in Alexandria, Egypt: a comparative study with school children

Objective: The phenomenon of street children in Egypt constitutes a public health concern. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of institutionalised street children in Alexandria, to compare the prevalence of substance abuse and conduct disorder between street children and school children, and to identify predictors of these mental health outcomes among street children.Methods: Institutionalised street children (n = 102) participated in a cross-sectional comparative study with a matched group of school children (n = 156). An interviewing questionnaire was used to assess demographic characteristics and substance use. Conduct disorder was measured using the Revised Ontario Child Health study scale.Results: Poverty, family breakdown, and domestic violence were the main reasons for street children having left home. Street children recorded significantly higher rates of substance use (9.8%) and conduct disorder (35.3%) compared to school children. In street children, smoking was a significant predictor of substance use and conduct disorder. Other predictors of conduct disorder included physical illness and having 5 to 7 siblings.Conclusion: Substance abuse and conduct disorder were present among institutionalised street children at higher rates than school children. Absence of basic life needs and disrupted families constituted the main reasons for leaving home. Interventions at the governmental and non-governmental levels are needed.

Characterization of different subtypes of schizophrenia: Premorbid functioning, neurophysiological differences, functional outcomes

Introduction Although not included in current diagnostic systems, deficit versus non-deficit and resistant versus non-resistant schizophrenia subtypes look more promising than traditional schizophrenia subtypes in terms of stability across time, clinical utility and interest for research. Aims To critically analyze evidence supporting the validity of two schizophrenia subtypes: Deficit Schizophrenia (DS) and Treatment Resistant Schizophrenia (TRS). Methods Empirical data supporting the validity of DS and TRS subtypes will be critically reviewed. Results DS, in comparison with non-deficit schizophrenia, is characterized by poorer premorbid functioning, more insidious onset, lower prevalence of dysphoria, hostility, suicidal ideation, depressive symptoms and substance abuse, different neurobiological abnormalities, and poorer response to treatment. The diagnosis of DS shows high reliability and stability across time. However, research based on this approach has proven difficult, especially in first-episode schizophrenia, and findings have not been as homogeneous as expected. TRS patients, as compared to non-TRS ones, show persisting psychotic symptoms, greater severity of negative symptoms, more severe cognitive dysfunctions, poorer premorbid functioning, longer duration of untreated psychosis, more frequent co-morbidity with personality disorders, earlier illness onset and poorer social functioning. Conclusions Future research should consider a) refining diagnostic criteria for DS and identifying valid DS endophenotypes; b) dissecting TRS based on psychopathological characteristics (e.g. presence of primary and persistent negative symptoms or persistently severe positive symptoms), and underlying neurobiological mechanisms (e.g. dopamine synthesis capacity and glutamatergic transmission).

Mo1404 - High Prevalence of Concomitant Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders in an Urban Underserved FQHC-Based HCV Treatment Program

Mo1404 - High Prevalence of Concomitant Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders in an Urban Underserved FQHC-Based HCV Treatment Program

Demographic Prevalence of Drug Abuse in youth: Cases from the Surkhet District of Nepal

Any substance used in chemistry, dyeing, or any technical process or mix or adulterate with a drug, esp. a narcotic or prison. Drug abuse as a term used to indicate the excessive use of a drug, regardless of whether an individual has reached the point of true dependence on it, or not. The main objective of this study is to identify the demographic prevalence of drug abuse among youth in Surkhet district. Quantitative research method was used to draw the data from 29 respondents of Birendranagar valley of Nepal. Simple Random sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Frequency table was generated for quantitative data. Demographic factors and pattern were taken to identify the demographic prevalence of drug abuse. Demographic factors had covered age, family, caste/ethnicity, education, occupation and marital status. Likely pattern factors had covered place where they use drug, what types of drug they use and with whom they use drug. Among them, majority respondents reported they use mostly drug use age is between 21 - 25. Likewise Brahmin/Chhetri Caste and ethnicity used more drug to compare others caste. Equally more prevalence of drug use can see in Nuclear Family.Journal of Advanced Academic Research Vol. 3, No. 2, 2016, Page: 82-91

Prevalence and determinants of substance abuse among youth in Central Kerala, India

Background: Substance abuse in various forms has been a social problem in various forms for many centuries. Kerala shows a high prevalence in alcoholism and is ranked top in India. This study is aimed at finding the prevalence and determinants of substance abuse among youth in central part of Kerala in South India.Methods: A community based study was done with 402 college student participants using a self- administered pretested semi structured questionnaire. Data was entered into microsoft excel and analysed using Epiinfo3.5.3.Results: Out of 402 students, 31.8% used or abused any one of the substances (alcohol, smoking, pan chewing) irrespective of time and frequency in lifetime. Age, gender, place of residence, attitude towards ban were significantly associated with substance abuse.Conclusions: The alarming trend of substance abuse among the youth reveals the urgent need to curb the menace. Adolescent counselling sessions might ensure preventing such behaviour from being inculcated in early adolescence.

Substance abuse at Jordanian universities: Perspectives of pre-service special education teachers

ABSTRACTThe aim of this large-scale in-depth interview study was to investigate special education student-teachers’ perspectives on substance abuse and measures for combating it in Jordanian universities. Participants were 202 special education pre-service teachers who were purposively selected from three universities for open-ended interviews following a broadly structured guide. Content analysis was used to examine responses which were summarized into five major themes: (1) prevalence of substance abuse among students, (2) reasons for substance abuse, (3) the university experience as a risk for substance abuse, (4) adequacy of substance abuse services, and (5) possible solutions for addressing substance abuse. Informants perceived substance abuse among their student peers as pervasive, with the leading substances being tobacco and water-pipe smoking, followed by marijuana, synthetic marijuana (“joker”) and alcohol for men. For women, water-pipe smoking was perceived as the most common with tobacco notable. Students expressed that the university experience was a risk for substance abuse, that substance abuse education at their university was inadequate, and that a desire for more services to combat substance abuse existed. Recommendations are provided concerning the role of universities in substance abuse education and programs to combat substance abuse.

Drug abuse: Uncovering the burden in rural Punjab.

Introduction:Drug abuse is a global phenomenon, affecting almost every country, but its extent and characteristics differ from region to region. India too is caught in this vicious circle of drug abuse, and the numbers of drug addicts are increasing day by day. The bane of drug abuse in Punjab has acquired the proportions of a pestilence that has shaken the entire society in the state. It is observed that in Punjab “drug abuse” is a raging epidemic, especially among the young.Methodology:The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 400 adolescents and young adults (11–35 years) from 15 villages of Jalandhar District. Systematic sampling (probability proportionate to size) was used for the selection of study subjects. A preformed, semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect information on type and frequency of drugs abused and other sociodemographic variables. The statistical evaluation of the data was performed using SPSS software, version 21.0.Results:The prevalence of substance abuse among study group was 65.5% and most common substance abused was alcohol (41.8%), followed by tobacco (21.3%). A high prevalence of heroin abusers was noted among study subjects (20.8%). The prevalence of nonalcohol and nontobacco substance abuse was 34.8%. A significant association of drug abuse was observed with male gender, illiteracy, and age above 30 years.Conclusions:The problem of drug abuse in youth of Punjab is a matter of serious concern as every third person is hooked to drugs other than alcohol and tobacco. The other striking observations were the high prevalence of heroin and intravenous drug abuse.

Substance Abuse among College Students: Prevalence, Predictors, and Prevention of Students Substance Use

Substance abuse among college students has become a subject of concern all over the world. Growing substance abuse and its crash on physical and psychosocial health is a global public health concern. Particularly disturbing fact is that the age of commencement of abuse is gradually falling. To plan effective interventions, it is essential to have information on the extent and type of substance abuse among students and their attitude towards its control. The current study was carried out to find out the prevalence of substance abuse among college students from urban areas in Bangalore and Mysore, data was collected from students in degree level (n=40), using the WHO ASSIST. This study aimed to show the prevalence of substance abuse among college students and also to understand the influence of legal and soft drugs on the future use of dangerous and hard drugs. Results of current study revealed that the prevalence of substance abuse among college students is high and causes significant physical and psychological problem in this population. A large proportion of those using drugs reported serious adverse effect, raising the necessity of targeted intervention to reduce the risk of subsequent substance and other deleterious consequence.

Descriptive Study on Magnitude of Substance Abuse among Students of Aman Poly Technique College Students, Bench Maji Zone South West Ethiopia

Background: The world drug problem continues to constitute a serious threat to public health and to the safety and well-being of humanity. It is also one of burning public health problem in Ethiopia. There is research evidence that showed increment of trend of substance abuse among high school and college students. Objective: To assess the magnitude of substance abuse among students of Aman Poly Technique College in 2016. Methodology: A descriptive quantitative cross sectional study was conducted to assess the magnitude of substance abuse among the students of Aman Poly Technique College. Results: The overall Prevalence of substance abuse was 42.5%. The commonly used substances were chat chewing 65%, Alcohol 28% and cigarette 4.8%. And the reasons to initiate substance abuse were peer pressure were36.8%, to relive from tension 20% and academic dissatisfaction were 18.4%. Conclusion: According to this study we conclude that chat was the most abused substance followed by alcohol and peer pressure was the most significant reason to initiate substance abuse.

A Study To Assess the Knowledge Regarding Drug Abuse and its Ill Effects among First Year Degree Students at D.R.M Science College in Davangere

Prevalence of substance abuse is high among adolescents as they are keen to experiment the drugs to fulfill their curiosity. If their experimentation could be prevented by making them aware about the abuse and its consequences, the prevalence of the substance abuse can be reduced.

Prevalence of substance abuse and socio-economic differences in substance abuse in an Australian community-dwelling elderly sample.

A sample of 324 55–90-year-old Australian adults participated in a survey on elderly substance abuse using the Clinical Assessment Scales for the Elderly. Overall, males had a higher prevalence rate of substance abuse than females. Significant differences in substance abuse mean scores were found for gender, age, income, community involvement, and retirement. The findings also reveal that being a female, involved in community groups, being a retiree, and being a non-baby boomer are protective factors of substance abuse. Being an upper medium income earner appears to be a risk factor of substance abuse.

Concept of the Ambulatory Pain Physician.

Given the growing number of ambulatory surgeries being performed and the variability in postoperative pain requirements, early discharge, and inconsistent follow-up, ambulatory surgery presents a unique challenge for this patient population and warrants the presence of an ambulatory pain specialist to evaluate a patient preoperatively and postoperatively to optimize patient safety and satisfaction. This article explores the crucial role that a dedicated pain physician would have in the ambulatory surgery setting. The prevalence of chronic pain, opioid use, and substance abuse is growing in this country, while ambulatory and same-day surgery have also experienced considerable growth. Inevitably, more patients with challenging chronic pain or substance abuse are having ambulatory surgery. Increased BMI, advanced age, more comorbidities warranting a higher ASA physical status classification, and longer surgeries are now all components of ambulatory surgery that contribute to increased risk too. Certain surgeries including breast surgery, inguinal hernia repair, and thoracotomy are at higher risk for the conversion of acute to chronic pain, and an ambulatory pain specialist would be beneficial for added focus on these patients. Multimodal pain control with non-opioids and regional anesthesia adjuvants are beneficial, while emphasis on a patient's functional capacity may be more useful than quantifying the severity of pain. Despite the best efforts of patients' primary care providers or surgeons, patients often are discharged with more chronic opioid therapy than they presented with, and an ambulatory pain specialist can help manage the complications and prevent further escalation of this opioid epidemic. An onsite anesthesiologist with interest in pain management in each ambulatory surgery center administering anesthesia and available onsite to deal with immediate preoperative, intraoperative, and recovery room would be ideal to curb and manage complication from uncontrolled pain and related pain issues.

THU-200 - High prevalence of concomitant substance abuse and mental health disorders in an urban underserved FQHC-based hepatitis C virus treatment program

THU-200 - High prevalence of concomitant substance abuse and mental health disorders in an urban underserved FQHC-based hepatitis C virus treatment program

Impact of familial risk factors on the severity of addiction in a sample of Egyptian adolescents

Background The 20th century ended with the conviction that drug abuse was a global problem, and thus global solutions were required. Adolescence represents a critical time to prevent alcohol and other drug use. Early initiation and regular use is often associated with negative consequences. Research on adolescents focuses increasingly on features of the family in predicting and preventing substance use, such as parenting style, parental monitoring, and parental substance use. Although there is an increasingly alarming phenomenon of drug abuse demonstrated in the Egyptian community, there has been no study that estimated the prevalence and risk factors of substance abuse in adolescents in Egypt recently. Aim of the work The current study aimed at exploring the effect of various familial risk factors on the development and severity of substance use in adolescent Egyptians. Participants and methods The current study included two groups: the patient group, which included 100 adolescents (92 male and eight female) from Mansoura, Egypt, between 10 and 19 years of age who were diagnosed as being substance abusers or substance dependants according to the DSM-IV-TR criteria; and the control group, which included 100 (86 male and 14 female) age and sex matched participants with no current psychiatric or neurological disorders. Tools of assessment used were as follows: Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview for children and adolescents (MINI KID), the Teen Addiction Severity Index (T-ASI) scale, and a scale for measuring family socioeconomic status for health research in Egypt. Familial assessment was carried out with Parental Monitoring Questionnaire and parenting style questionnaire. Results The incidence of substance use was higher in male (92%) than in female (8%) adolescents. The most commonly abused substances were tramadol (97%), followed by cannabis (94%) and sedatives and hypnotics (38%), and the least commonly abused substance was anticholinergic (12%). The majority of the studied addicts were abusing more than one drug (92%). The results of the study indicated a highly significant difference between substance users and controls on all familial risk variables. Conclusion The substance use disorders are a major health problem among youth, and it is more prevalent in male sex in Egyptian population. Tramadol dependency is at the top of all substances abused in Egypt, followed by polysubstances. The findings highlight how family influences subsequent adolescent substance use.

Pattern and profile of children using substances in India: Insights and recommendations.

India has one of the largest proportion of children and adolescents in the world, but the threat posed by child substance use remains under-researched. Only recently a large study, the first of its kind in India, was carried out with a sample of nearly 4000 children using substances (school-going, out-of-school as well as street children) across more than a hundred cities/towns. We discuss (i) the existing knowledge on the prevalence of child substance abuse in India; (ii) perspectives and insights gained from the recent nation-wide study on its pattern and profile; and (iii) recommendations for substance use prevention and treatment among children in the Indian context. A multipronged approach involving all stakeholders is required to address the issues of prevention and treatment.

Modeling The Underlying Tobacco Smoking Predictors Among 1st Year University Students In Iran.

Background:There are scant studies on the prevalence and determinants of tobacco smoking among 1st year university students in Iran. We aim to determine the prevalence of substance abuse and identify factors related with tobacco smoking in 1st year students of Qazvin University of Medical Sciences (QUMS).Methods:A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information on sociodemographic, cigarette smoking, hookah smoking, and related risk factors among 521 1st year students in QUMS between January and February 2014. We used logistic regression to determine factors associated with substance abuse among students.Results:The descriptive statistics indicated that the prevalence of lifetime cigarette and hookah smoking was 8.6% (confidence interval [CI] 95%: 6.5–11.4) and 35.5% (CI 95%: 31.5–39.7), respectively. After adjustment for other factors, being male, the presence of any smoker in the family and having smoker friends were factors associated with cigarette and hookah smoking among students. Our findings also revealed the co-occurrence of risk-taking behaviors among students.Conclusions:Our study showed considerably low prevalence of tobacco smoking among 1st year students. Longitudinal studies are necessary to approve the observed results of this study and thus allow for a certain generalization of the observations.

Relationship between Drugs Use and Sexual Risk Behaviors among Senior High School Students

Background : Drugs use and risky sexual behavior among teenager are some of crucial problems arising in Indonesia. Statistic showed that there is an increasing prevalence in drugs use and risky sexual behavior among teenagers. This study was conducted to analyze the relationship between drugs use and risky sexual behaviors among high school students. Methods : An analytic study involving 432 students in 5 state high schools located in Kerees region Bandung, West Java, Indonesia, was carried out in 2013. The region was chosen due the high prevalence of substance abuse. The inclusion criteria were every high school students in the Karees region. The exclusion criteria were the students who refused to participate in the study, did not come when the sample was taken, and did not fill the questionnaire completely. The instruments used for the study were questionnaires with cross-sectional technique. Furthermore, the questionnaire used for analyzing drugs use was Addiction Severity Index-Lite Version (ASI-lite) questionnaire; with additional questionnaire to analyze risky sexual behaviors. Results : Out of 432 students, 23.8% students already engaged to one or more risky sexual behavior. Among all respondents, the prevalence of students who had already done kissing was 22.7%, necking 9.3%, petting 7.2% and sexual intercourse 1.2%. Illegal drugs had been used at least once by 21.8% students. According to Chi-square test, drugs use and risky sexual behavior were related. Conclusions :The prevalence of both drugs use and risky sexual behaviors are high and students who use drugs are more prone to do risky sexual behavior. [AMJ.2017;4(1):125–8] DOI : 10.15850/amj.v4n1.1032