Identification of substance abuse among medical students in a Nigerian University

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was to identify substance abuse among medical students of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Nigeria, and correlate it with their urine samples. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 150 undergraduate students of the College of Medicine University of Lagos, Nigeria. Ethical approval was obtained for the study and informed consent obtained from the participants before the commencement of the study. Data on the knowledge and prevalence of drug addiction were collected from the undergraduate students using a validated self-developed questionnaire while standard sample bottles were used to collect the students’ urine samples. Data collected were summarized using descriptive statistics. Chi-square was used to establish an association between the variables. Results: Sixty-three (42.2%) male and 87 (57.8%) female medical students participated in this study out of which 99 (65.9%) had good knowledge of drug addiction, 21 (15.6%) admitted that they have taken drugs not prescribed by a physician while 33(24.4%) claimed to have previously done drug test. The prevalence of drug abuse among the students was 15.6%. The age with the highest rate of drug abuse was 11–18 years. Tramadol was the most abused drug by the students while the most preferred route of drug abuse was oral route 20 (14.8%). Conclusion: There was a low prevalence of substance abuse among the medical students. BIOEASYTM immunoassay Multi-Drug Test Card was effective in screening the student’s urine. There is an urgent need for interventions like health education and training to be established in our higher institutions.