4-Fluoramphetamine in the Netherlands: Text-mining and sentiment analysis of internet forums

Blankers, Matthijs; Gouwe, Daan van der; Laar, Margriet van

doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2018.11.016

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Alternatively, Google Trends is a great source of public data for forecasting global consumption indirectly, as it has been shown that consumers will turn to search engines to collect information on items they are interested in purchasing [22]. Studies using Google Trends have found that the tool gives clear insight into consumer interest, high correlative data as predictor of future activity, and search data is large, constantly available, and in almost realtime [23][24][25][26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Google Trends to monitor new psychoactive substance. Is there an added value?

Batistic

Rhumorbarbe

Lefrançois

et al. 2021

Forensic Science International

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The past decade has seen an increase in the development and availability of a broad category of drugs, known as new psychoactive substances (NPS). NPS are challenging for public health authorities, therefore the two major drug monitoring bodies -the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) -have implemented the EU Early Warning System (EWS) and Early Warning Advisory (EWA), respectively. While these monitoring systems are informative, it is difficult to keep up with the constant and rapid developmental rate of NPS. The EMCDDA has recognised the need for an alternative and technologically derived early warning system. The aim of this research is to determine whether Google Trends and drug discussion forum data can be used to complement early warning systems for NPS.Forty-eight substances were used in this study and classed into groups based on their chemical structure, following the UNODC classification system. Google Trends data (time range: 2004-2019) and drug forum data (time range: 2003-2018) were extracted for each substance and visual trend profiles were created for class groups as well as individual substances. Analysis was conducted to determine when a substance first appeared on Google Trends and a drug discussion forum as well as their trends over time. This date of first appearance was then compared to the date the substance was first reported to UNODC.Of the three data sources utilised, substances were most likely to appear on Google Trends first. Amongst the different classes of NPS, discernible trends ('block', 'successive', and 'generational' trends) were observed. These trends reflect the evolution of the manufacture of substances or generations of substances that has been observed in the literature. For example, in the synthetic cannabinoids' category, a generational trend is observed that corresponds to the different generations of synthetic cannabinoids. When comparing Google Trends and Drugs-Forum directly, the order of appearance and duration of presence for substances aligns accurately for most classes.Google Trends showed the emergence, persistence, or transient nature of substances, which could direct the focus of law enforcement, health organisation and laboratory resources towards a limited number of substances. When one considers the reliance of individual information seeking on the Web as well as the prominence of NPS on the Web, it becomes clear that Google Trends and drug discussion forums could be used as a complement to current early warning systems.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of Google Trends to monitor new psychoactive substance. Is there an added value?

Batistic

Rhumorbarbe

Lefrançois

et al. 2021

Forensic Science International

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Hence, sentiment analysis showed both positive and negative emotions towards cocaine. The main negative emotions were attributed to fear and annoyance and the positive emotions included interest, enjoyment and relaxation [ 60 , 61 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring e-psychonauts perspectives towards cocaine effects and toxicity

Assi

Keenan

Hamid

2022

Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background According to the World Drug Report, cocaine is the second most used drug globally after cannabis. Online discussion forums enable the understanding of authentic drug users’ experience as it is anonymous. Therefore, this study determined the uses, effects and toxicity of cocaine from the perspectives’ of e-psychonauts. Methods A qualitative study was conducted using six popular discussion forums. From these discussion forums, 1229 posts from 50 threads were subject to thematic analysis. Hence, the information from these threads were examined carefully for patterns and codes among the data. The codes were then collated into subthemes and themes. Results The four main themes emerging from the study were related to cocaine characteristics and use, e-psychonauts’ knowledge and experience, desired effects and adverse events. The main characteristic associated with cocaine use was purity that was highest in the US being nearest to the source. The most common cutting agent encountered in cocaine samples was levamisole that increased the chances of immunosuppression and cardiovascular toxicity. Purity depended on the source of purchase that included street dealers, dark web and surface web. Hence, e-psychonauts recommended purchase of cocaine from known dealers rather than websites with unknown sources. E-psychonauts mainly used cocaine in social context and parties or to self-medicate against anxiety and depression. Effects desired from cocaine use were mainly euphoria and increased energy. However, tachycardia and myocardial infarction were the main adverse events. It is noteworthy to mention that myocardial infarction was idiosyncratic and was often lethal. Myocardial infarction was more often reported when cocaine was combined with alcohol due to the production of cocaethylene. Social harm was also reported as a consequence for the use of cocaine that resulted in homelessness and broken relationships. Conclusion Online discussion forums allowed the understanding of e-psychonauts’ experience with cocaine use. Not only it informed about the sources and modalities of use of cocaine but also about the adverse events and social harm associated with cocaine use. The present findings serve as useful information for practitioners and healthcare professionals dealing with cocaine users.

show abstract

“…A score around +/-0.5 details moderately positive or negative sentiment. A neutral text fragment would have a score of 0 [41]. Sentiment analysis determines the valence of a text without regard to the context, i.e.…”

Section: Sentiment Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Vaping-related news events and their relationship with sentiment in the online vaping environment: A computational interrupted time series analysis with large-scale public data

Kumar

Janmohamed

2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Vaping-related news coverage may have furthered misconceptions around the relative harms of vapes. Also, some positive opinions around vaping may be derived from misinformation, perhaps creating inimical health outcomes. Thus, we need to study how vaping-related news events (e.g. 2019 vaping illness epidemic, COVID-19) are associated with sentiment in the online vaping environment, to better understand how to promote vaping as a potential harm reduction technique for those who smoke and are unable to quit, and to minimize vape-centric misinformation that could lead to reduced health outcomes. Methods: We obtained vaping-related online data through web-scraping several online environments from August 1 2019 - April 21 2020. Sentiment analysis was performed to understand changes in sentiment in the online vaping environment in relation to vaping-related events, such as the Trump administration's planned ban on flavored vaping products, and when COVID-19 was first reported to the WHO. Results: For all online environments, we observed a statistically significant negative association of 15% (Estimate: -0.16; 95% CI: -0.29, -0.03; P: 0.01) between sentiment score and the Trump administration's move towards a ban on flavored vaping products, and a statistically significant positive association of 7% between sentiment score (Estimate: 0.07; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.14; P: 0.02) and when COVID-19 was first reported to the WHO (December 31 2019). Conclusions: News events may be related to sentiment in the online vaping environment, depending on the event. Depending on the nature of the event, we suggest that public health messaging may improve health outcomes.

show abstract

4-Fluoramphetamine in the Netherlands: Text-mining and sentiment analysis of internet forums

Cited by 13 publications

References 17 publications

Analysis of Google Trends to monitor new psychoactive substance. Is there an added value?

Analysis of Google Trends to monitor new psychoactive substance. Is there an added value?

Exploring e-psychonauts perspectives towards cocaine effects and toxicity

Vaping-related news events and their relationship with sentiment in the online vaping environment: A computational interrupted time series analysis with large-scale public data

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About