Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Patrones de consumo de sustancias de una muestra no consultante de consumidores de pasta base de cocaína

2006; Volume: 44; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.4067/s0717-92272006000100003

0717-9227

Rodrigo Santis B, Viviana Hayden C, Sergio Ruiz P, Enzo Anselmo M, Rafael Torres B, Carmen Gloria Hidalgo C,

Health and Lifestyle Studies

Background:In Chile, crack or free-base Cocaine (FBC) use is associated with social isolation and drug traffic.This fact might be conditioning a hidden population of CBP users.The aim of the study was to characterize a sample of out-of-treatment CBP users by means of Privileged Access Interviewing in two districts of Santiago.Methods: Nine privileged access interviewers were trained to administer a questionnaire about substance use patterns and related risk behaviors.Results: 160 CBP users were recruited.The median age of the sample was 21 years (min: 12; max: 46).Gender distribution was 61,9% male.CBP was the primary abused substance in 85% of the sample.The median days of use in the last month was 23 days (min: 0; max: 30) and the median daily dose in the last month was 4,2 gr/day (min:0; max:75).The median age of onset of CBP use was 16 years (min: 8; max: 37).Conclusions: The pattern of substance use of this out-of-treatment sample seems to be more serious than the pattern of a general population sample reported by a National Survey in the same territorial areas.This sample, or part of it, might be a hidden population of CBP users.