Substance abuse is a major social problem with enormous human and economic costs against which the United States directs significant resources for law enforcement, interdiction, treatment, and prevention. Greatly increasing the costs of substance abuse is the problem of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection among persons who inject illicit drugs. In the United States, approximately one-t...

AIMS To assess recent drug use through urine testing as well as the prevalence of tobacco and alcohol dependence among young males and to analyse the associations between tobacco dependence and cannabis use (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, THC), tobacco dependence, and alcohol dependence as well as between THC use and other illicit drug use. METHODS Urine samples were collected, and nicotine an...

Cocaine is the second commonest illicit drug used and the most frequent cause of drug related deaths. Its use is associated with both acute and chronic complications that may involve any system, the most common being the cardiovascular system. Cocaine misuse has a major effect in young adult drug users with resulting loss of productivity and undue morbidity with cocaine related cardiac and cere...

Illicit use of stimulant drugs such as methamphetamine, ecstasy, and cocaine is a current and growing problem throughout the world. The aim of the current study was to investigate the long-term effect of illicit stimulant use on human motor cortical and corticospinal circuitry. We hypothesized that individuals with a history of primarily methamphetamine and ecstasy use would exhibit altered cor...

abstract  introduction: the use of illicit drugs is increasingly prevalent among young people in many countries. the adverse consequences of drug use by youth includes dependence, overdose, accidents, physical and psychological damage, and premature death. methods: this cross-sectional was conducted on men at least 15 years old in isfahan. data were collected using two questionnaires filled out...

Compared to the users of other illicit drugs, mortality rates among crack cocaine users have been found to be conspicuously high. Several factors contribute to this pattern. This article argues that one of the primary factors involved in drug-related deaths among crack cocaine users is the role this drug plays in fostering infectious disease syndemics, including adverse interactions among HIV, ...

AIMS To examine possible differences between crack users and crack non-users across Canada. DESIGN Cohort study of illicit opioid and other drug users in five cities across Canada. SETTING Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City, Canada. PARTICIPANTS Regular illicit opioid and other street drug users not in treatment at time of assessment. MEASUREMENTS Participants (n = 6...

BACKGROUND Despite concerns about its health and social consequences, little is known about the prevalence of illicit opioid use in New York City. Individuals who misuse heroin and prescription opioids are known to bear a disproportionate burden of morbidity and mortality. Service providers and public health authorities are challenged to provide appropriate interventions in the absence of basic...