Addiction and Health
Year:2018 | Volume:10 | Issue:1 |Papers Count:8

Almost from the 4th century B. C, the opioids have been consumed for analgesic and sedative effects in the recreational and religious ceremonies. Today, opioids are being prescribed for the treatment of acute and chronic painful conditions, of course, it is controversial in chronic noncancerous pain due to making tolerance and dependency. The opioid drugs have been chemically provided from different alkaloids of raw opium for medical use. ...

Background: This paper investigated the effectiveness of narrative therapy in groups on psychological well-being and distress among Iranian women with addicted husbands. Methods: The research was an experimental study with pretest-posttest control group design along with follow-ups of one month and three months. The statistical population consisted of all the women with addicted husbands who referred to welfare and social service houses of district 10 in Tehran, Iran. Participants were forty-four persons who had mental health score lower than the mean of statistical society. They were selected using the voluntary sampling method, and were also randomly assigned to two groups, experimental and control. After the early loss, each group included twenty persons and was evaluated by Mental Health Inventory (MHI-28). The experimental group received 10 sessions of the group counseling. Data were analyzed with repeated measure ANOVA and Bonferroni post-hoc test. Findings: The results showed that psychological well-being of women who received the sessions of group counseling "narrative therapy" was improved significantly rather than those who did not received that (P < 0. 001), and psychological distress of them was reduced significantly in comparison to the women who did not participated in the sessions (P < 0. 001). Conclusion: Based on these findings, it seems that narrative therapy in groups is effective in the promotion of psychological well-being of women with addicted husbands, and also could be effective in reducing their psychological distress. Therefore, it can be concluded that narrative therapy group interventions improve mental health of women with addicted husbands.

Background: Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is the largest non-governmental organization (NGO) for alcoholics in the world. During the recent decades, Iran has suffered from alcohol abuse and its consequences. Alcoholism is a taboo subject in Iran and there are few studies in this area. This is the first study in Iran to investigate the results of the activity of anonymous alcoholics. Methods: Data were collected from the improved members of the AA in Iran (n = 6197). Findings: The obtained results included members’ demographic characteristics, age of sobriety, average attendance in weekly meetings, status of the sponsor, status of relapse, and the way of entering each member into AA groups. Conclusion: The activity of the AA in Iran is facing limitations and obstacles. The number of individuals with sobriety age above 20 years is not available because of the short-age activity of the AA in Iran. The number of men using this program is higher compared to women. Most members are individuals aging 31 to 40 years who are considered active members of the society.

Background: To self-medicate substance dependence, many substance users consume herbal medicines delivered in herbal medicine shops which are prepared through non-standard methods using a variety of different materials. Hence, the present study was carried out aiming to investigate and analyze the content of such herbal medicines. Methods: Four herbal medicine shops were selected from each of the 22 zones of Tehran City, Iran, and a total of 95 samples were purchased. A package containing 6 types of medication that was advertised by a satellite TV channel, was also purchased. Using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method, the samples were analyzed in the laboratory to detect different types of materials. Findings: Among the samples, 23 and 72 samples were uncovered compressed pills (Dragon pills) and capsules filled with colored powders (handmade self-medicating substance dependence capsules), respectively. The package advertised in the satellite TV was prepared in 6 various forms. The most common substances present in all the samples were as follows: diphenoxylate, tramadol, opioids, acetaminophen, and codeine with values of 90%, 86%, 78%, 69%, and 68%, respectively. On average, 5 of the above mentioned substances were present in each sample; moreover, 63% of the samples contained 5 or more substances. In addition, 42 (41%) of the samples contained all the 5 main substances including opioids, codeine, tramadol, diphenoxylate, and acetaminophen. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that handmade capsules and pills used for self-medicating substance dependence and also medicines advertised in the satellite TV channels contain different amounts of opioids, amphetamine, benzodiazepines, tramadol, codeine, and other substances that cause problems for substance users who are going to abandon substance abuse.

Background: The study of temperament and problem-solving styles in people with substance abuse is important in promoting the functions of prevention and treatment of this social problem. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the nature and problem-solving skills of methadone treated patients with buprenorphine treated patients. Methods: This study was performed on 62 patients and 54 patients randomly selected for buprenorphine and methadone treatment, respectively. The data was collected using Cloninger’ s Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and the Problem-Solving Questionnaire designed by Cassidy and Long. Findings: Novelty seeking (NS) was higher in patients treated with buprenorphine than those treated with methadone and cooperation was higher in methadone treated patients than those treated with buprenorphine. Moreover, helplessness in patients with methadone treatment was more than those treated with buprenorphine. Conclusion: The study of personality or temperamental characteristics (novelty seeking, cooperation, and etc. ) and problem-solving styles in people on buprenorphine and methadone treatment is recommended because it may increase therapeutic success and patients’ adherence to treatment.

Background: The study aimed to evaluate the interval between first drug use and regular injection and factors associated with transition from first injection into premature regular injection among people who inject drugs (PWIDs). Methods: In a multicenter cross-sectional study, we recruited 400 PWIDs using snowball sampling. Age of first drug use, age of initiation of regular injection, and demographic and behavioral data were collected using face to face interview. Premature transition to regular injection was defined as initiation of regular injection within the five years of first injection. Data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression survey analysis. Findings: The mean age of first drug use and age of initiation of regular injection was 29. 87 ± 6. 54 years, respectively. Having history of sexual abuse in childhood [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 3. 1], history of imprisonment (AOR = 3. 4), use of heroin as the first drug (AOR = 4. 3), and doing the first injection at friends’ houses (AOR = 2. 2) or in ruins (AOR = 2. 2) significantly increased the chance of premature transition to regular injection, while being a female decreased the chance of premature transition to regular injection (AOR = 0. 4). Compared to curiosity, being friend with a drug user (AOR = 0. 4), having withdrawal symptoms (AOR = 0. 2), and low cost of injection (AOR = 0. 3) at the first occasion of drug injection reduced the chance of premature transition to regular injection. Conclusion: New interventions to prevent injection initiation among drug users are needed and should be integrated in harm reduction programs.

Background: This comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to assess the associated factors of maintenance in patients with methadone therapy in the world. Methods: A systematic literature review was performed from several scientific databases; these include PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Science, and MEDLINE. We searched the following keywords: “ Methadone” , “ Maintenance” , “ Retention” , “ Meta-analysis” and “ Associated factors” . Data were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The purpose of this study was to assess the associated factors of maintenance in patients under treatment with methadone by an overall effect size, odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] using meta-analysis. Findings: We selected 24 researches out of 94413 for our study based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria for systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled recognized five significant positive associations of age, marital status, employment status, gender, and length of treatment with methadone usage (OR age = 3. 566, 95% CI = 3. 296-3. 836, P < 0. 001; OR marital status = 1. 101, 95% CI = 1. 028-1. 175, P = 0. 025; OR employment = 1. 157, 95% CI = 1. 060-1. 254, P = 0. 015; OR gender = 4. 686, 95% CI = 4. 434-4. 939, P < 0. 001; OR duration of treatment = 1. 543, 95% CI = 1. 443-1. 647, P < 0. 001; respectively). However, education and injection status showed a non-significant positive association with methadone usage (OR education level = 1. 279, 95% CI = 0. 976-1. 583, P = 0. 266; OR injection status = 1. 205, 95% CI = 0. 725-1. 658, P = 0. 442). Conclusion: This systematic-review and meta-analysis study displayed that factors such as age, marital and employment status, gender, and duration of treatment are effective on maintenance in patients under treatment of methadone.

Oral cancer is a highly lethal disease and one of the most debilitating and disfiguring of all malignancies in the world. According to Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) 2010 report, 60% of tobacco users in India use only smokeless tobacco. Among 206 million smokeless tobacco users, 65. 1 million are consuming gutkha. In recent years, gutkha is recognized as a life threatening disorder with the serious health consequences. The aim of this review is to increase the attention to complete ban of tobacco use, awareness, knowledge, and beliefs of public about the harms of not only gutkha but also all other tobacco products and also to promote the intentions to quit the habits.