Changes in Drug Use Patterns during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy: Monitoring a Vulnerable Group by Hair Analysis

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Isabella Mercurio¹  Kyriaki Aroni¹  Cristiana Gambelunghe¹  Mauro Bacci¹  Alessia Nicoletti¹  Alessio Gili²  Angela Gambelunghe³ 

[1] Forensic Medicine, Forensic Science and Sports Medicine Section, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Perugia, Piazza Lucio Severi, 06132 Perugia, Italy;Hygiene and Public Health Section, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Perugia, Piazza Lucio Severi, 06132 Perugia, Italy;Occupational Medicine, Respiratory Diseases and Toxicology Section, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Perugia, Piazza Lucio Severi, 06132 Perugia, Italy;

关键词: COVID-19 pandemic;    substance abuse disorder;    addiction;    lockdown;    hair analysis;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph18041967

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

From 22 March until 18 May 2020, a complete lockdown in Italy was ordered as a countermeasure against the COVID-19 pandemic. Social isolation measures affect some populations more than others, and people with drug and/or alcohol disorders (SUDs) are more likely to be adversely affected. This study presents, for the first time, laboratory data on the use of alcohol and drugs in a high-risk population during Italy’s first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Thirty subjects with SUDs were monitored for the use of illicit drugs and alcohol every 3 months before, during and after the lockdown, by hair analysis. The number of samples positive for heroin, cocaine, MDMA and cannabis fell considerably during the lockdown and then resumed to pre-lockdown levels when the period of confinement was over. Interestingly, the consumption of benzodiazepines and alcohol followed the opposite trend; both the number of benzodiazepine-positive samples and the level of alcohol consumption increased and remained high, even at the end of the lockdown. The confinement measures produced significant changes in drug/alcohol use patterns, with a shift toward the use of substances that were more easily accessible, used as self-medication for negative feelings, and used to alleviate the effects of abstinence from drugs that were no longer readily available.

【 授权许可】

Unknown