Substance use & misuse
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Substance use & misuse · Jan 2015
Big Events in Greece and HIV Infection Among People Who Inject Drugs.
Big Events are processes like macroeconomic transitions that have lowered social well-being in various settings in the past. Greece has been hit by the global crisis and experienced an HIV outbreak among people who inject drugs. ⋯ However, most pathways to risk remain unknown or unmeasured. We use what is known and unknown about the Greek HIV outbreak to suggest modifications in Big Events models and the need for additional research.
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Substance use & misuse · Jan 2015
Patterns of, and Factors Associated With, Illicit Pharmaceutical Opioid Analgesic Use in a Prospective Cohort of People Who Inject Drugs in Melbourne, Australia.
People who inject drugs (PWID) are a key population engaging in pharmaceutical opioid analgesic (PO) use, yet little is known about patterns of illicit PO use among this group. ⋯ We found little evidence of ongoing illicit PO use among those followed up, with illicit PO use linked to polydrug use more broadly. Nonetheless, trends in illicit PO use among PWID should continue to be monitored and harm reduction interventions implemented to reduce the associated public health risks.
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Substance use & misuse · Jan 2015
Do physical abuse, depression, and parental substance use influence patterns of substance use among child welfare involved youth? Substance use misuse.
To date studies have not explored patterns of substance use exclusively among youth in the child welfare system. Consequently, little is known about polysubstance use among child welfare-involved youth. This study aimed to explore whether physical abuse, parental substance use, depression, and demographic characteristics predict distinct patterns of substance use among child welfare-involved youth using latent class analysis (LCA). ⋯ Older youth and youth who experienced physical abuse were at greater risk of being in the polysubstance use class, while living with a biological parent reduced the likelihood of polysubstance use class membership. Youth in the alcohol and marijuana use class were more likely to be older and depressed. Results from this study illuminate important targets for interventions.
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Substance use & misuse · Nov 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyCharacteristics of a treatment-seeking population in outpatient addiction treatment centers in Mexico.
Baseline patients' characteristics are critical for treatment planning, as these can be moderators of treatment effects. In Mexico, information on treatment seekers with substance use disorders is scarce and limited to demographic characteristics. ⋯ Substance use related problems, clinical features, and addiction severity reported by treatment seekers are important characteristics to take into account when planning treatment as they facilitate tailoring treatment to meet patients' needs.
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Substance use & misuse · Sep 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialPerceived peer drinking norms and responsible drinking in UK university settings.
Heavy drinking is common among students at UK universities. US students overestimate how much their peers drink and correcting this through the use of social norm messages may promote responsible drinking. ⋯ In this UK based study, although perceived social norms about peer drinking were associated with individual differences in drinking habits, campus wide norm messages about responsible drinking did not affect students' intentions to drink more responsibly. More research is required to determine if this approach can be applied to UK settings.