Sociodemographic Characteristics and Drug Abuse Patterns of Treatment-Seeking Illicit Drug Abusers in Finland, 1997–2008: The Huuti Study

Abstract

The epidemiological part of the Huume tietokanta (HUUTI) consortium research project is the first large-scale longitudinal study of treatment-seeking illicit drug abusers in Finland. The objective of this report was to describe the sociodemographic characteristics and drug abuse patterns of treatment-seeking clients at their first visit. This study analysed baseline data of 4817 clients (3365 men and 1452 women) aged 11-65 years who sought treatment for drug abuse between 1997 and 2008 at Helsinki Deaconess Institute. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. The majority (56%) of clients were between 15 and 24 years, educated at elementary school level (75%), and unemployed (57%). Opiates (30%) were the primary drugs of abuse. The primary drugs were mostly injected (45%) and were abused daily during the past month (44%). Cannabis was the most common secondary drug of abuse (34%). The secondary drugs were predominantly smoked (39%) or taken orally (38%) and were abused once per week or less frequently during the past month (33%). Age at initiation of illicit drug abuse ranged from 5 to 49 years. Polydrug abuse was common, with a mean consumption of 3.5 concurrent polydrug use, which were combined from 3 or more drug classes. The prevalence of lifetime/ever intravenous drug abuse was 64% and past month intravenous drug abuse was 64%, respectively, and 13% reported sharing injecting equipment during the past month. Early initiation, polydrug abuse, and risky consumption of illicit drugs were major areas of concern among the study population. Injecting drug use could place considerable burden on health services in view of complications and transmission of infectious diseases.

Patterns of drug abuse among drug users with regular and irregular attendance for treatment as detected by comprehensive UHPLC‐HR‐TOF‐MS

“…Among the samples from Centres A and B the mean numbers of concurrently abused drugs per sample were 2.1 and 3.9, respectively. In the survey by Onyeka et al ., the mean number of concurrent drugs for Finnish treatment‐seeking drug abusers was 3.5. Polydrug abuse has been shown to increase the risk of premature termination of OMT .…”

“…In 2014, 101 NPS were reported to the European Union Early Warning System . A large‐scale Finnish survey on treatment‐seeking drug abusers showed that stimulants previously used to be the most frequently abused drugs, but nowadays the primary drugs of abuse are injected opioids . In addition, polydrug abuse was common, the mean number of substances abused being 3.5.…”

“…[1] A largescale Finnish survey on treatment-seeking drug abusers showed that stimulants previously used to be the most frequently abused drugs, but nowadays the primary drugs of abuse are injected opioids. [2] In addition, polydrug abuse was common, the mean number of substances abused being 3.5. Lintonen et al [3] estimated that drug abuse, especially the abuse of NPS and medicinal drugs, will be more prevalent and the number of people with drug-related health problems is expected to increase.…”

Coexisting social conditions and health problems among clients seeking treatment for illicit drug use in Finland: The HUUTI study

“…Details of drug use patterns among all the clients have been described elsewhere [27] but a brief description is provided here. Lifetime prevalence was highest for cannabis (78%).…”

Awareness, Knowledge, Perception and Attitude towards Prescription Medicines Abuse among Medicines Prescribers and Dispensers in Nnewi Nigeria

“…Individuals abuse prescription medicines for various reasons that may include: in order to get high; as selfmedication for anxiety, pain, or sleep problems; or to enhance cognition [7]. It could also be used as secondary drug among those who abuse alcohol and illicit drugs [8]. However, these reasons/purposes may vary by gender, age and other factors.…”