• Ajibola Idowu, Ayodele Olatayo Aremu, Ibukun Mary Akanbi, Gloria Eseigbe, Victoria Adewale, Loliya Awubite, Olumide Adebayo, Daniella Arisa, Blessing Adetona, Ayomikun Olaniyan, Ebunoluwa Olafisoye, Oluwaseyi Olorunshola, Jesulayomi Eyitayo, Omotolani Ogunlana, Oluwaseye Aboloye, Anatasia Mayor, and Emmanuel Olatunde.
• Department of Community Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Bowen University, Iwo Nigeria.
• Afr Health Sci. 2023 Dec 1; 23 (4): 563574563-574.

Study ObjectivesThis study assessed the prevalence, patterns and factors associated with substance abuse among youths of Ejigbo community, Osun State, Nigeria.MethodThis was a descriptive cross-sectional study which employed cluster sampling method to select 420 consenting youths (aged 15-24years). Data were collected using interviewer-administered, semi structured questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were carried out at p < 0.05.ResultsThe mean age (±SD) of the respondents was 19 ± 4.18 years. Majority (89%) of the respondents possessed good knowledge of substance abuse while 4% of them had a positive attitude towards it. Above a quarter (29.8%) of respondents had ever consumed alcoholic beverages while 12.3% of them had engaged in substance abuse. Besides alcohol, Shisha and tramadol were the most commonly abused substances in the study setting. Respondents' age (AOR=3.11;95%CI=1.67-5.24), gender (AOR=1.87;95%CI=1.53-9.25), attitude to substance use (AOR=5.90;95%3.45-10.23) and marital status (AOR=3.27;95%-CI=2.71-7.24) were the main determinants of substance abuse in the study setting.ConclusionRespondents in the current study had good knowledge, predominantly negative attitude but a relatively high burden of substance abuse. There is urgent need for policy makers to upscale fights against the menace of substance abuse among rural Nigerian youths.© 2023 Idowu A et al.

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