Psychoactive Drug Use in Toxicology Unit Patients, Mansoura Emergency Hospital, Egypt

Abou Eleinen, Rania, Virginia Commonwealth University, United States/Mansoura University, Egypt; Mostafa, Maha; Ghanem, Abd-Elaziz; Elnaggar, Elsayed; and Elbayomy, Azza, Mansoura University, Egypt

Objective: The purpose of this study was to help fill gaps in knowledge about drug abuse in Egypt as observed in a hospital emergency unit.

Method: This study was conducted on 150 patients presenting with drug overdose over the period of 2002–2004. Patients were subjected to history taking and social assessment according to a modification of a psychosocial/substance use assessment questionnaire. Thirty ml urine was obtained from each patient with a positive history of abuse of psychoactive drugs and screened for opiates, barbiturates, and cannabis by Syva, Solaris Emit® d.a.u. assay, thin-layer chromatography, and high-performance liquid chromatography.

Results: The majority of the studied abusers were found to be single, between age 16–25; they started use between age 11–25 and had poor academic achievement. More than 50 percent of them were either manual or skilled workers, 54 percent lived in a stressful family atmosphere, and 44.7 percent had a family history of substance abuse. They reported abusing drugs mainly for their pleasurable effects. Some abusers (39.3%) had a history of arrest, and 14.7 percent had a history of suicidal attempt at least once in their lifetime. The most common detected substance in urine was cannabis (68%), followed by opiates (42.7%), and then barbiturates (26.7%). The diagnosis of polysubstance use was more prevalent than single substance use. All but one of the patients gave a clear history of regular cannabis (bango) use.

Conclusion: Substance abuse in Egypt can be considered a youth phenomenon, especially among single males with poor academic achievement who are generally manual and skilled workers. Cannabis is widely accepted and preferred by this segment of the population.