Khat Dependence, Use Patterns, and Health Consequences in Australia: An Exploratory Study

Young, Jesse T; Butt, Julia; Hersi, Abdi; Tohow, Ahmed; Mohamed, Daud Harun

doi:10.15288/jsad.2016.77.343

Cited by 16 publications

(19 citation statements)

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“…The observed prevalence rate for khat dependence in male subjects in this study is 48.9%, which is consistent with prevalence rates previously reported of 51% in the UK (21), of 52% in Saudi Arabia (23), and of 44% in Australia (24). It is a clear public health concern that roughly half of male khat users sampled in four different countries are khat dependent and likely candidates for treatment intervention.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…There is also evidence to indicate that khat users can develop a psychological dependence to khat (19,20) and a valid measure of khat dependence has been developed (21). Studies have found positive associations between khat dependence and khat-related biological measures (22), psychological and physical symptoms (23) and health problems (24). Another study found that khat dependence was higher in men than women and that a positive link between age and khat dependence in women only (20).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Level of khat dependence, use patterns, and psychological correlates in Yemen: a cross-sectional investigation

Nakajima¹,

Hoffman²,

Al’Absi³

2017

East Mediterr Health J

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Chronic khat use is associated with negative health consequences. However, no study has fully characterized individuals who are khat dependent. This paper examines socio-demographic and psychosocial correlates of adult khat dependence. A total of 270 khat users (129 women) in Yemen completed face-to-face interviews and provided demographic information and data on patterns of khat use, subjective mood, and sleep quality. The Severity of Dependence Scale-Khat (SDS-khat) was used to assess level of khat dependence. A series of analysis of variance was conducted. Khat users, on average, used khat for 5.2 hours a day (SD = 2.3) for 5.7 days a week (SD = 2.0). Individuals who screened positive for khat dependence reported longer duration of khat sessions per day, higher frequency of khat use per week, greater levels of negative mood and sleep disturbances, and were more likely to endorse physical symptoms after khat use (P < 0.05). Future research should elucidate mechanisms responsible for khat dependence symptomatology. Niveau de dépendance au khat, modes de consommation, et corrélats psychosociaux au Yémen : enquête transversaleRÉSUMÉ La consommation chronique de khat est associée à des conséquences néfastes sur le plan de la santé. Cependant, aucune étude n'a permis une caractérisation complète des individus dépendants au khat. Le présent article se penche sur les corrélats socio-démographiques et psychosociaux de la dépendance au khat chez l'adulte. Au total, 270 consommateurs de khat (129 femmes) au Yémen se sont soumis à des entretiens en face à face et ont fourni des informations démographiques et des données sur les modes de consommation, l'humeur subjective et la qualité du sommeil. L'Échelle de la sévérité de la dépendance pour le khat a été utilisée pour évaluer le niveau de dépendance à cette substance. Une série d'analyses de variance a été réalisée. Les utilisateurs de khat en consommaient, en moyenne, pendant 5,2 heures par jour (ET = 2,3) 5,7 jours par semaine (ET = 2,0). Les individus dépistés positifs pour la dépendance au khat signalaient des séances de consommation de khat de durée plus longue par jour, une fréquence plus élevée de consommation par semaine, des niveaux plus importants d'humeur négative et de troubles du sommeil, et étaient davantage susceptibles de ressentir des symptômes physiques après en avoir consommé (p < 0,05). La recherche future devrait s'efforcer de déterminer les mécanismes responsables de la symptomatologie de la dépendance au khat.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Level of khat dependence, use patterns, and psychological correlates in Yemen: a cross-sectional investigation

Nakajima¹,

Hoffman²,

Al’Absi³

2017

East Mediterr Health J

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“…The specific withdrawal symptoms reported were yawning, craving, mood disturbance (feeling depressed, irritability), feeling fatigue and dizziness, hot feeling, slight tremor of the tongue and body, increased appetite, sleep disturbance, headache, and blurring vision [37][38][39]43] as shown in Tables 1 and 2. Increased frequency of use, the minimum was once in a month [47], ≥8 days in a month in another study [49], and the maximum was daily use [16], was an important indicator of problematic khat use. People who chewed for > 5 h per session [22], or about more than 12 h per week [47], were also perceived as a sign of being problematic khat user.…”

Section: Quantitative Studiesmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…Others [39] employed structured questionnaires to measure withdrawal experiences associated with problematic khat use or they [49,50] reported subjective experiences of addiction without formal measurement.…”

Section: Quantitative Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Psychological and physical symptoms [22,51,52], withdrawal experiences [37,39,53], distressing experiences after khat use [49], and impairment of control or stopping [54] were reported indicators of problematic khat use. Nencini et al [52] reported that reduced respiratory and body temperature was observed among customary khat users, similar to amphetamine abuse.…”

Section: Quantitative Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Definition and Validity of the Construct “Problematic Khat Use”: A Systematic Review

et al. 2019

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Background: Problematic khat use, not khat use per se, is a public health and social concern for the public, researchers, and policy makers. However, the construct problematic khat use is not well-established and not fully recognized in the modern definition of substance use disorders including Diagnostic Statistic Manual (DSM-5) and international classification of diseases (ICD-10), although DSM-5 included it in the “stimulant use disorder” category. Existing scoping reviews have focused on khat use, which could not allow the differentiation of khat use from problematic khat use. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to define and validate the construct problematic khat use. Methods: This systematic review was reported following the PRISMA guidelines. We searched all English language studies without publication date restriction from 5 databases; PubMed, EMBASE, psychINFO, SocINDEX, and Google scholar. All studies that defined, explored, evaluated, or measured the construct problematic khat use were included. Adapted data extraction tool and criteria for quality evaluation were employed. We presented the results in tables and thematic synthesis of the major findings. Result: Overall, 30 qualitative and cross-sectional design studies were included. Associated harms with khat use, an increased amount used, increased frequency of use, and withdrawal experiences were indicators of problematic khat use. Using khat on an average of 3 or more times per week and using other psychoactive substances during and after khat use were frequently used to define problematic khat use. The most frequently reported withdrawal symptoms were depressed mood, irritability, fatigue, lack of motivation, increased sleep, and appetite. The existing measures (severity of dependence scale and DSM-5) of problematic khat use had psychometrically acceptable properties in terms of construct, criterion, and convergent validity, but they are poor in terms of other domains of validity including content, conceptual, and semantic validity. Conclusion: Problematic khat use constitutes, but is not limited to, harms, increased use over time, and frequent engagement in other psychoactive substances misuse. Khat use is different from problematic khat use since it is occasional and used for prayer, social, and functional reasons. Strong empirical studies that could establish thresholds for patterns of problematic khat use and a culturally suitable problematic khat use measures that follows a bottom-up approach of scale development are warranted.

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Using the Severity of Dependence Scale to screen for DSM‐5 khat use disorder

Duresso

Matthews

Ferguson

et al. 2018

Human Psychopharmacology

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Although khat is a mild stimulant, there is clear evidence that some consumers are both concerned with their use and experience problems associated with their use. Consistent with its application for other drugs, the SDS is a brief and simple screening tool that appears to validly identify individuals experiencing a khat use disorder syndrome and experiencing high rates of adverse consequences in association with use.

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Khat Dependence, Use Patterns, and Health Consequences in Australia: An Exploratory Study

Cited by 16 publications

References 0 publications

Level of khat dependence, use patterns, and psychological correlates in Yemen: a cross-sectional investigation

Level of khat dependence, use patterns, and psychological correlates in Yemen: a cross-sectional investigation

Definition and Validity of the Construct “Problematic Khat Use”: A Systematic Review

Using the Severity of Dependence Scale to screen for DSM‐5 khat use disorder

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