In this study, the effects of heroin on the embryo of addicted mice were determined. For this purpose, the parents were addicted with gradual increase in concentration of heroin (0, 1, 0.3 and 0.5 mg/ml, in drinking water). The female and male mices were categorized in 5 groups: females as prep regnant addicts, post pregnant addicts and pre and post pregnant addicts and males in healthy and addicted groups. On the 17th day of pregnancy, it was found that the decrease in embryo's weight and crown rump length, were significant. Also we reconfirmed that crown rump length, absence, or decrease of gametogenesis and decrease of sexual activities, prolonged fertilization period, embryo and parental death, and also abnormalities in different tissues (digital process., diversion of body axis, growth stunting, subcutaneus hemorrhagia, tail diversion, opened eyelids, abnormal flextures, in vertebral column, etc).

One method of drug smuggling is body packing or body stuffing, placement of narcotics (opium, heroin, hashish, …) inside intestinal tract for transfer from city to city or country to country. Estimating of the methods for transferring, content of packets, packaging, cause of death and results of diagnostic and therapeutic methods can effectively decrease the number of body packer and law execution.This study is case series by randomized sampling. Several parameters such as sex, age, marital status, addiction, job, level of education, type of opioids and their weight and number of packets, result of abdominal X-ray, surgery needs, were collected from April 1999 to December 2000.Through this period of time, 32 male smuggler who had swallowed drug packets were detained. The average age was 41 years (max=62, min=20). The minimum weight of the opium carried by this smugglers was below 20 gram and maximum weight was 1000 grams (median=360 grams). The minimum number of packets were one packet and maximum number of packets were 54 (median=10 packets). In 84 percent of body smugglers the content of packets was opium, 13 percent was heroin and 3 percent was hashish. From the cases, 81 percent of smugglers were addicts themselves. Death occurred in 7 cases from which 3 were after surgery.

Injection of narcotics has become widespread and its prevalence along with the use of heroin and cocaine has been on the rise. Consumers of narcotics in injectable form are people who are engaged in unlawful activities which the society disapproves. Their exact number and determination of incidence of infectious complication in these persons is not available.The infectious complications in a drug addict are mostly related to the environment and the life style of the addict rathe than per se the type of the drug itself.The characteristics that increase the risk of infection in drug abusers include increased rate of skin, mucous membrane and nasopharyngeal carriage of pathogenic organisms, unsterile injection techniques, contamination of injection equipments or drugs with organisms poor oral hygeinc, poor and low socioeconomic status, other behaviors such as cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption along with injection of drugs and the absence of primary health care services.

Objectives: The present study explored the relationship between severity of psychiatric disorders and degree of opium dependence as a negative prognosis in treatment of drug addicts. Method: This study is a descriptive- cross sectional, the subjects were 240 (232 men and 8 women) randomly selected from among opium addicts seeking treatment. The instruments were an MMPI test and a psychiatric interview performed individually. The data were analyzed through a Chi Square, analysis of variance and a Tukey test.Findings: The most common method of using opium is the poker-stone method. The average drug taking period was 5.96 years, the average starting age was 24, and the average number of give-up attempts was 1.1. 50.4% were found to suffer from one or more psychiatric disorders, the most common ones being anti-social personality (25%), depression (20.5%) and anxiety (18.3%) respectively. The study demonstrated that psychiatric disorders intensify as opium dependence increases; 30.5% of those who used opium smoking pipe, 39.2% of those who used poker and stone, 73% of those who sniffed the drug and 92.3% of heroine addicts were found to be suffering from psychiatric disorders. Results: The presence of mental disorders in addicts is not far from reality. To treat them, severity of addiction and psychiatric disorders should both be taken into consideration. Degree of addiction serves both as a sort of negative prognosis in unsuccessful give-up attempts, and as a cause for higher rates of comorbidity of psychiatric disorders.

Background: Opium dependency is one of the important health problems in our country. Several studies have shown that most of the patients with opium dependency have concomitant psychiatric disorders. The aim of this study was evaluation of the psychiatric disorders in opium dependent patients, and comparison of the psychiatric disorders between opium and heroin dependency. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive study, 192 male opium dependent patients who were admitted in dual- diagnosis ward of Beheshti Hospital in Kerman for detoxification, were enrolled in the study. After evaluation of their demographic data, they were assessed by means of SCL-90-R test. Results: The age of subjects ( mean± SD) was 33.92± 7.67 years. All of scales of SCL-90-R were evaluated as borderline or sick. Scores of scales: Obsession and compulsion, anxiety, phobia, psychosis, PST, and GSI were significantly higher in patients with heroin dependency, compare to opium dependent patients (p<0.05).Conclusion: We recommend that all of the patients with opium dependency should be evaluated for co morbid psychiatric disorders, this may improve the outcome and management of their dependency.

Introduction: Evaluation and planning based on inaccurate statistics and information will disappoint us in fighting against the addiction phenomenon. This study has considered the personal characteristics and consumption patterns of the narcotics among self introduced addicts.Materials & Methods: in this retrospective and descriptive analytic study the characteristics of the self-introduced addicts referred to Aligoudarz admission and treatment office of the welfare organization were studied using their files and recorded data and information (totally 384 files).Findings: Results showed that 97.5% of the clients were male with mean age of 34.5 years old 70% were married with average of 2.6 children.The most frequency of educational degree of the addicts was guidance level (37.5%), 93% of the samples had the history of cigarette smoking and 24.4% of the cases had the history of opium consumption in their first class family members.The mean age of starting of addiction was 26.7 years old and the average time between addiction till referring for giving it up was 8 years.67.7% of the samples had five times history of abandonment of addiction.3% of them had used syringe in 9ommon and 4% of them had committed other offences in addition to addiction. The consumed narcotics were opium (74% ), heroin (20% ), both opium and heroin (6% ).The common ways of consumption were. fumigation (66%), eating (15.3% ), injection (9.9%), and both eating and fumigation (8.8%).There was a significant relation between kind of consumed narcotics and age, addiction starting age, place of birth, daily using times, consumption way and marital status.Conclusion: According to the results it is necessary to carry out similar researches for epidemiological description and analysis of precise status of addiction throughout the Lorestan province, its cities and townships.

Background & Aim: Addiction is one of the critical interactions in the world. In the past two decades because of significant growth of the population in one hand, and the social crises due to numerous tensions in the other hand, the number of addicts were increased and the age of onset and quality of crimes arising from addiction has shown.Materials & Methods: The survey was carried out in 1997, all cases were 200 prisoners and all were interviewed directly, 200prisoners as control group were selected randomly out of the prison. Results: Results showed that 61.5% of 200 addict prisoners were less than years old and 12% were less than 18 years old, compared with 80% more than 40 year old before 1970.Another striking finding was that before 1970, 80% of addicts were dependent on opium and heroin has been abused only by 20% of the addicts.Our study showed that 60% of the whole sample addicted to heroin and 33% on opium.82% of 200 addict prisoner claimed that the main motivation to abuse substance was their curiosity: psychological problem, life events; employment were the other reasons leading to substance abuse.Discussion: The result of this article indicated that the main causes of social aberration such as addiction and... are family and friend relationship, deprivation and lack of social solvents.

Introduction: Opium dependence is one of important health problems in our country. Several researches showed many of patients with opium dependence have psychiatric disorders. The aim of this study was evaluation of psychiatric disorders in opium dependent patients and comparing psychiatric disorders between opium and heroin dependent patients. Method & Material: In this descriptive study, 192 male opium dependent patients who were admitted in dual-diagnosis ward of Beheshti hospital, Kerman, Iran for detoxification, were enrolled randomly. After evaluation of their demographic data, they were assessed by means of SCL-90-R standard test. Analysis of variance and chi-square tests were used for statistical analysis and P<0.05 was considered as significant. Results: The mean± SD of age of subjects was 33.92±7/67 years. All scales of SCL-90-R were evaluated as borderline or sick. Scores of obsession and compulsion, anxiety, phobia, psychosis, PST and GSI were significantly higher in patients with heroin dependence than patients with opium dependence. Conclusion: It is recommended that all of patients with opium dependence should be evaluated for comorbid psychiatric disorders, that may improve outcome of their dependence treatment. Heroin dependent patients have more psychopathology than opium dependent patients and need more attention.