New indicators to compare and evaluate harmful drug use among adolescents in 38 European countries:

Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs

AlessiaMammone¹ 

关键词: adolescent drug users;    frequency of use;    polydrug use;    incidence indicators;    ESPAD;   

DOI  :  10.2478/nsad-2014-0027

学科分类：生物化学/生物物理

来源: Sage Journals

【 摘 要 】

AimsNew trends in drug consumption reveal increasing polydrug use. Epidemiological indicators in the current use are based on the prevalence and the associated potential harm of a single “main” substance. We propose new indicators to evaluate frequency and potential harm of polydrug use. The indicators are used to compare drug use among countries based on survey data on adolescents' substance use in 38 European countries.MethodsThe approach is based on analysis of the frequency of use in the various population samples: lifetime use, twelve months use or last thirty days, depending on available data, and on the risk of harm for the substances used. Two indicators are provided: the frequency of use score (FUS) by summing the frequency of use of each substance, and the polydrug use score (PDS) that weight all the substances used by their risk.ResultsThe indicators FUS and PDS were calculated and the distribution functions were used to characterise substance use across ESPAD countries. The analysis shows impo...

【 授权许可】

CC BY