An Epidemiological Study among Substance Abusers Visiting the Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment (OOAT) Centre Clinics in District Patiala.

BACKGROUND

Substance abuse has become a global phenomenon and is prevalent all over the world in all cultures. Despite treatment, the prognosis of substance dependence is slimy, and recovery from substance dependence is very difficult. The plague of drug abuse in Punjab has shaken the entire society in the state. It is observed that in Punjab, "drug abuse" is a raging epidemic, especially among the young. To study the sociodemographic profile of substance abusers and their associated factors.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted after obtaining approval from the institutional ethical committee. A pre-validated proforma was used to collect the information regarding the socio-economic profile of substance abusers and the related factors after obtaining written and informed consent from the substance abusers. Using formulae 4pq/l 2 and design effect of 2 and a dropout rate of 15%, a sample size of 468 was calculated; however, 512 substance abusers were interviewed for 6 months from 31st July 2022 to 31st December 2022 at 2 Outpatient Opioid Assisted treatment (OOAT) centres in District Patiala.

RESULTS

In the present study, 56.05% of substance abusers belonged to the 20-39 years of age group, with a mean age of initiation of 22.8 ± 6.5 years. Males constituted 99.40% of the study population. Opioids (80.27%) were the most commonly abused substance. About 2/3rd of the substance Abusers (65.43%) were made to consume the illicit substance for the first time by their friends, followed by self (32.23%). The major source of motivation to visit the OOATs centre was self (44.14%), friends (39.06%), and family/relatives (10.55%).

CONCLUSION

In this study, it was observed that the majority of the substance abusers were males residing in the urban areas belonging to the Schedule Caste (SC) community living in nuclear families. A significant association was found between the type of family and the attempts made previously to quit the drug.