The global distribution and epidemiology of alcohol and drug use among street-involved children and youth: a meta-analysis

Armoon, Bahram and Griffiths, Mark D and Mohammadi, Rasool and Mohammadi, Rasool (2023) The global distribution and epidemiology of alcohol and drug use among street-involved children and youth: a meta-analysis. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse.

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Abstract

Background: Street-involved children and youth (SICY) who work and live on/of the streets are more likely to inject drugs and engage in psychoactive substance use.Objectives: The present study aimed to identify the prevalence, distribution, sociodemographic determinants, and risk-taking associated with alcohol and drug use among SICY.Methods: Studies published in English related to alcohol and drug use among SICY were searched for from December 1 1985 to July 1 2022, on PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane, and Web of Science.Results: After full-text paper evaluation, 73 studies were included in the meta-analysis. Results indicated that lifetime prevalence rates were 44% (alcohol), 44% (crack), 33% (inhalants), 44% (solvents), 16% (tranquilizer/sedatives), 22% (opioids), and 62% (polysubstance use). The current prevalence rates were 40% (alcohol), 21% (crack), 20% (inhalants), 11% (tranquilizer/sedatives), and 1% (opioids). Also, life-time and current prevalence of alcohol and crack use, current prevalence of tranquilizer/sedative use, and life-time prevalence of polysubstance use were higher among older age groups. Life-time prevalence of tranquilizer/sedative use was lower among older age groups.Conclusions: The high prevalence of using alcohol, crack, and inhalants is a major issue because they are used extensively among different age groups, including minors. Such findings are beneficial for policymakers, health authorities, and professionals in developing programs aimed at minimizing inhalant use and other types of substance use harms among this group. It is important to accurately monitor this risk-exposed population to understand the mechanisms that might help protect them from high-risk substance use

Item Type: Article
Subjects: R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Divisions: Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences > School of Medicine
Depositing User: samira sepahvandy
Date Deposited: 21 Jun 2023 05:25
Last Modified: 21 Jun 2023 05:25
URI: http://eprints.lums.ac.ir/id/eprint/4298

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