title: Changing pattern of drug use in individuals with severe drug dependence following inpatient treatment.
abstract: Ninety-seven subjects (92 of whom were opiate users) admitted to an inpatient treatment unit were followed 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after discharge using the Substance Abuse Assessment Questionnaire (SAAQ).(1) The subjects presented problems of severe drug use, frequently complicated by additional difficulties; 67% of the sample completed detoxification. Significant reductions in daily drug use were seen at 12 months for each major class of drug, except cannabis. One-third of daily opiate users had been abstinent from opiates for at least one month prior to the final follow-up. Most changes took place between admission and the 3-month follow-up, and these improvements were maintained across the sample as a whole. Within the sample, fluctuations in drug use were observed, with subjects both relapsing to, and remitting from, drug use. Subjects who achieved at least one 3-month period of abstinence were more likely to have been employed at admission, and also more likely to have committed an offence immediately prior to admission, than those who did not achieve this level of abstinence. These results suggest that detoxification programmes produce benefits which can be maintained in the medium term. Further longitudinal studies are required to investigate the triggers for both relapse and remission.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Addiction Studies, St George's Hospital Medical School, London, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghodse
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dunmore
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Sedgwick
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Howse
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gauntlett
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Clancy
keywords: inpatient treatment; severe drug dependence; twelve month follow-up