Patterns of drug abuse in Upper Egypt: cause or result of violence?

Abstract

Background: Drug abuse and violence both are dangerous phenomena in all countries. The relation between drug abuse and violence is obscure, and what comes first is the question. This study clarifies the changes in drug abuse patterns in Upper Egypt and the association between drug abuse and different types of violence. Method: Three hundred patients seeking medical advice in Mental Health Hospital participated in this study. After obtaining their informed written consent, they underwent urine analysis to determine the abused drug and filled up a questionnaire to determine the type of violence. In this study, the patients were asked to fill out two types of scales: Adolescent Alcohol and Drug Involvement Scale (AADIS) and the Modified Overt Aggression Scale (MOAS). Results: Patterns of drug abuse have been changed in Upper Egypt since the appearance of tramadol. The age of onset of abuse was 17.5 ± 5.5 years old. The age of 21-30 years old is the age of adult which is mostly affected. Most of the patients use combination of tramadol and others like alcohol, cannabis, other opioids, but 25% use tramadol alone. The type of violence changes from one drug abuse to another; auto-aggression was found in cannabis, while aggression towards objects and others was found in tramadol, inhalants, and other opioids. Conclusion: Drug abuse is a direct cause that increases the violence in the community. Types and degree of violence differ according to the drug abuse type.

The Effectiveness of Life Skills Training on Assertiveness, Self-Esteem and Aggressive Behavior among Patients with Substance Use Disorders

“…This result was congruent Baconi et al, (2018), who showed that more than half of the patients (52.5%) of the target group were consumed heroin. Also, Yassa and Badea, (2019), found that most patients used multiple drugs, followed by tramadol, a synthetic opioid that appeared mainly as an analgesic in Egypt and later as an addictive drug. Regarding the correlation between self-esteem and total aggression, the current result illustrated that there was a statically significant negative correlation between self-esteem and total aggression.…”

The effectiveness of a sexual assault nurse examiner-grounding program (SANE-GP) on knowledge, skill and practice regarding sexual assault examination (SAE) among nurses working in a tertiary care hospital in Udupi district, India: A study protocol

“…These include positioning and examination of the client, obtaining high-quality specimens, identifying and reporting genital-anal injuries after sexual assault, comparing the injuries of consensual and non-consensual intercourse, identifying and collecting traces from the fingernail and other materials for the DNA analysis of the aggressor and employing DNA evidence in sexual offence cases to aid the identification of suspects, movement of forensic evidence and chain of custody, analysing and preventing drug-facilitated crimes against women, usage of photo colposcopy to identify hymenal transections and other injuries in children and adult females, simulation, forensic photography, bite-mark identification, handling vicarious trauma and mindfulness based interventions for better coping. Peer support is also essential for nurses to be able to cope with the demands of working in such situations (Drake and Adams, 2015;Gharedaghi et al, 2018;Yesodharan et al, 2018Yesodharan et al, , 2021Rodriguez et al, 2019;Usman et al, 2019;Yassa and Badea, 2019;McAllister and Vennum, 2021;Zweig et al, 2021).…”

Contribution of Illicit Drug Use to Pharmaceutical Load in the Environment: A Focus on Sub-Saharan Africa

“…As millions of people abuse amphetamine-like stimulants, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and other substances, the volumes of illicit drugs used worldwide may be equivalent to those of prescriptive drugs. Therefore, to control and monitor our environment, drug abuse should be kept under consideration as these substances are among emerging contaminants [ 17 , 104 , 116 ].…”

“…However, no present rule requires these developing contaminants to be determined in treated wastewater, surface water, drinking water, or the atmosphere. Although drug abuse is now recognized as a global problem [ 15 – 17 ], the secondary effects of these substances have not yet been evaluated, such as their contribution to pharmaceutical load in the environment. The evidence of illicit drugs in waste and river waters is mostly available in developed countries [ 3 , 18 – 22 ].…”