![]() ![]() The EU drugs agency (European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction-EMCDDA) in association with the Sewage Analysis CORe group Europe (SCORE), analysed urinary biomarkers in the wastewater of 56 European cities to explore drug-taking habits for amphetamine, methamphetamine and MDMA. In Europe, as in other parts of the world, a number of different indicators reveal widespread use of amphetamines and ecstasy. The UNODC estimated that there were 37 million users of amphetamines and 22 million users of ecstasy worldwide in 2015, making ATS the second most commonly used illicit drugs after cannabis. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), ATS use is rising rapidly, with seizures of ATS having doubled in the 5 years prior to 2015 (191 tons in 2015). Besides preventing a pathway into ATS dependency, the aim of an intervention should be to reduce the harm by for example drug testing which offers also the opportunity for interventions to prevent developing a substance use dependency.įor the group of dependent ATS users, our study suggests holistic, tailored interventions and specialist treatment services are needed, as a single, simple intervention is unlikely to cover all the life domains affected.Īmphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) refers to a range of drugs including amphetamine, methamphetamine, 3,4-methylendioxy-methylamphetamin (MDMA and ecstasy), fenethylline, ephedrine and prescribed drugs containing methylphenidate (e.g. ![]() Conclusionsįor non-dependent, frequent and non-frequent ATS users, negative life events from the period of ATS use do not become obvious in our analysed data. A detailed analysis of the specific life domains reveals that dominantly, the social environment was affected by negative life events. Although some group differences could be attributed to the individuals’ life course prior to first ATS use, most negative life events were associated with periods of ATS usage. Current and formerly dependent ATS users showed more negative life events for the entire life course after age adjustment. Out of 3547 life events documented, 1523 life events were categorised as neutral, 1005 life events as positive and 1019 life events as negative. We applied statistical analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to test for group differences. Life events were categorised as either positive, neutral or negative, and associated data were analysed systematically to identify differences between user groups. As part of the interviews, we used life course charts to capture key life events and substance use histories. Two hundred seventy-nine in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with five ATS user groups (current and former dependent users current and former frequent users non-frequent users) and one group of exposed non-ATS users in five European countries (Germany, UK, Poland, Netherlands and Czech Republic). Here we report initial findings from the life course chart exercise conducted as part of qualitative interviews with ATS users and nonusers. The ATTUNE project “Understanding Pathways to Stimulant Use: a mixed methods examination of the individual, social and cultural factors shaping illicit stimulant use across Europe” aims to fill this gap. However, there is limited understanding of what shapes patterns of ATS use over the life course.
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