This paper presents the findings of a five-year study of year-11 pupils (15?16 years old), based on a sample drawn from seven schools in the North West of England. It examines: use, feelings about close friend's use and perceptions of the health-related risks of specific drugs. The findings conform with those examining other similar populations,…

Over the course of the last decade, Stockholm has witnessed the emergence of a number of voluntary organizations that are active in the field of crime prevention. This article describes the "Lugna Gatan" project, which was initiated in Stockholm in 1994. The idea was to create an organization comprised of young adults aged between 20 and 30 whose…

Patients in treatment for substance-use disorders tend to smoke at higher rates than the general population. However, despite the fact such patients may be interested in smoking cessation and have been shown to be able to quit successfully without jeopardizing their sobriety, clinicians are often reluctant to advise their patients to stop smoking.…

UK and US literature indicate that cocaine and crack users experience multiple problems and poor treatment outcomes (Gossop et al., 2002 , 2003 ). Using data collected as part of a Scottish national evaluation of drug treatment effectiveness, this paper: (i) provides information on the nature and extent of recent cocaine and crack use among 585…

This study documented the prevalence of twelve traumatic event categories among individuals in UK substance misuse treatments. The relationship between traumatic events, anxiety and active substance misuse was tested. A cross-sectional design compared treated ex-substance-misusers and prescribed active substance-misusers, with respective "norm"…

This paper describes research on drug issues affecting Chinese, Indian and Pakistani people living in Greater Glasgow. There were two strands: (i) a questionnaire-based survey of young people and focus groups; (ii) interviews with young people and adults. The primary aims were to gather prevalence data and to investigate perceptions about current…

In Ontario, some court cases have involved attempts to sue social hosts for damage caused by the behaviour of drunken guests. Such legal actions give rise to the question of risks and responsibilities accruing to social hosts who serve alcohol. Using a sample of 1395 male and female adult residents of Ontario, the authors present self-report…

During the last three years, the newly announced drug policy, specifically cannabis, has been the subject of debate between the Government and the opposition parties within the Belgian Federal Government. Public communication by the Federal Government and the competent ministers was incomplete, untimely, inconsistent, tendentious and polemical.…

Aims: We discuss the Addicts Index (AI) and examine whether the epidemiological trends of the AI can be continued by the regional drug misuse databases (DMDs, now known as National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS). Methods: (i) Matching individuals recorded as addicted to opiates and/or cocaine in the AI with those reported to the North…

Aims: To provide a brief review of relevant existing evidence regarding pharmacological treatment for drug users, in order to enable commissioners and service providers to make informed decisions that are evidence based wherever possible. Methods: The review process involved an examination of key reference texts and literature derived from…

The increasing health problem of hepatitis C virus infection has only recently attracted the attention of psychosocial research, especially among subjects at higher risk (e.g. injecting drug users). There is a lack of information about the knowledge, perceptions and feelings that injecting drug users hold about their hepatitis C antibody positive…

A cross-sectional analysis of baseline data collected during a secondary prevention intervention study was conducted to describe patterns of drug use in a non-treatment sample of young drug users recruited in ten further-education colleges across inner London. Participants were 200 young people who were either weekly cannabis users and/or who had…

A survey of drug use in the past year was completed by 124 clubbers (50% male, 50% female, age range 14-44, mean 24 years). Participants were self selecting and recruited in clubs and pre-club bars. Prevalence rates for alcohol, cannabis, and ecstasy were over 80%; 63% reported cocaine and 53% amphetamine use, 15%-43% used ketamine, psilocybin,…

Recreational use of illicit drugs (i.e. use not associated with a diagnosed drug problem) may cause psychological and social harm. A recent systematic review found that evidence for this was equivocal. Extensive evidence was only available in relation to cannabis use. This was relatively consistently associated with lower educational attainment…

In this paper we report the results of research on the nature and extent of legal and illegal drug use among preteens and those factors associated with illegal drug use at this young age. The paper is based upon a survey of 2318 ten to twelve year olds in Glasgow and Newcastle. Overall around 30% of children reported having been exposed to illegal…