Substance Use in the Club Scene of Rome: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Objective. Over the last few years, a wide number of unregulated substances have been marketed on the Web and in smart and head shops; they are usually advertised as legal alternatives to commonly known drugs and are defined as “smart drugs,” “legal highs,” and “novel psychoactive substances” (NPS). Aim of our work is to describe use habits and distribution of NPS in a population of young adults in Rome club scene. Methods. A self-administered questionnaire was proposed to subjects over 18 years of age at the entrance of 5 nightclubs in Rome. Socioeconomic characteristics and substance use were investigated. Results. Preliminary results give evidence that 78% of respondents have a lifetime history of NPS use. In addition, 56% of the sample has consumed illicit drugs in the past and 39% has used psychoactive substances in the 12 hours preceding the questionnaire administration. Conclusions. A significant proportion of subjects report use of novel psychoactive substances; traditional illicit drugs consumption, particularly cocaine, appears to be very high as well in the club scene. These data highlight a serious public health challenge, since pharmacological, toxicological, and psychopathological effects linked to interactions among all these substances may be unpredictable and sometimes fatal in vulnerable individuals.

Drug Abuse, Relapse, and Prevention Education in Malaysia: Perspective of University Students Through a Mixed Methods Approach

“…This research has subsequently highlighted another limitation to previous research, which is a lack of information about the availability and commonality of substances within the community. While findings from past research on drug user populations such as Vento et al (23) and Bersani et al (24) have generally found that drug users view ecstasy or MDMA and psychoactive pills as chemically similar in effect, the current study found an interesting viewpoint in non-user perceptions. Additional qualitative feedback from the pilot study indicated that the students viewed these substances differently in its context of use.…”

Novel psychoactive substances: use and knowledge among adolescents and young adults in urban and rural areas

“…Data from EMCDDA highlighted that only a small percentage (around 5%) of tested youths (19–24 years old) have experienced with NPS, most of them obtaining drugs from friends or at parties, rather than online (EMCDDA ; Vento et al . ). A UK‐based research found out that almost one‐third of a sample of students (446) had tried NPS at least once in their life (Corazza et al .…”

“…Indeed, the systematic collection of data related to NPS knowledge and consumption is scarce and highly variable among different countries. Data from EMCDDA highlighted that only a small percentage (around 5%) of tested youths (19-24 years old) have experienced with NPS, most of them obtaining drugs from friends or at parties, rather than online (EMCDDA 2012;Vento et al 2014). A UK-based research found out that almost one-third of a sample of students (446) had tried NPS at least once in their life .…”

Consumption Patterns of Nightlife Attendees in Munich: A Latent-Class Analysis

“…Given the established link between psychostimulant use and the nightlife, the fact that these new substances often imitate established psychostimulants, looking toward the nightlife setting for more information on the patterns of NPS use seems obvious. One study, conducted in nightclubs in Rome, reported a 78% lifetime prevalence rate of NPS and "club drug" use among their study sample (Vento et al, 2014). Although NPS use has also been known to occur in other subcultures (Deluca et al, 2012) the study by Vento and colleagues (2014) suggests that the nightlife population should be strongly considered when investigating the use of NPS.…”