Evaluation of psychosocial factors and psychiatric comorbidity among persons abusing cannabis

CONTEXT: Cannabis is one of the most widely used illicit substances in the world. The increasing use of cannabis has raised a series of complex issues about both the health effects of cannabis & the appropriate social response to increasing cannabis use. Amongst issues relating to the consequences of cannabis use, there have been concerns about the extent to which the use of cannabis is associated with increased risks of a range of psychosocial problem. Specifically, it has been well documented that those who use cannabis are at risk population for a range of adverse psycho social outcomes that include: crime; mental health problem, other forms of illicit drug use; social drop out & unemployment. AIM OF THE STUDY: To evaluate psychosocial factors and psychiatric comorbidity among persons abusing cannabis. OBJECTIVES: 1. To evaluate sociodemographic profile among persons abusing cannabis. 2. To evaluate problematic domains among persons abusing cannabis. 3. To evaluate withdrawal symptoms among persons who abstain from cannabis. 4. To estimate the distribution of psychiatric comorbidity among persons abusing cannabis. 5. To estimate sociodemographic variables and psychosocial attributes between adolescent and adult onset of cannabis abuse. DESIGN: Descriptive study. SETTING: This study conducted at the Institute of Mental Health, a tertiary care center in Tamilnadu. SAMPLE SELECTION: 100 subjects qualified for cannabis dependence by ICD 10 were taken. SCALES USED: Semi structured proforma, Cannabis withdrawal scale, Marijuana problem scale, MINI plus questionnaire. RESULTS: We found that those who presented with cannabis related problems are predominantly males, 77% unmarried, 70% belong to urban area, 96% belong to LSES, 64% employed. The mean age of onset of cannabis use was 18.36 years with a median of 17 years. 87% has family history of substance use disorder whereas history of mental illness present only in 13%. 68% used cannabis in adolescent period i.e less than 19 years. 48% use nicotine, 66% use ...