NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE EPIDEMIOLOGIC ...

most frequently reported secondary drugs among primary
PCP admissions. A vast majority (96 percent) of
the primary PCP admissions smoked the drug. There
were no notable changes from the previous reporting
period in terms of user demographics. Other hallucinogens,
such as LSD, peyote, and mescaline, continued
to account for approximately 0.1 percent of the
total treatment admissions.
Preliminary unweighted data accessed from DAWN
Live! for the first half of 2004 indicate that of the
4,688 major substances of abuse reported in the Los
Angeles division, 75 (2 percent) were PCP (exhibit
7). Seventy-five percent of the patients reporting PCP
use were male and 35 percent were White (followed
by 33 percent Black and 27 percent Hispanic). Sixtyfive
percent were age 30–54, and an additional 16
percent were between 18 and 25. A total of 161 chief
complaints were logged for patients reporting PCP.
The top three complaints were altered mental status
(38 complaints), intoxication (33 complaints), and
psychiatric condition (23 complaints). User patients
were more likely to smoke PCP (45 percent) than
inject (16 percent). PCP-using patients were most
likely to be discharged home (44 percent) or admitted
to a psychiatric inpatient ward (21 percent).
California Poison Control System calls involving
exposure to PCP among Los Angeles County residents
fluctuated between 10 and 20 calls from 2000
to 2003 (exhibit 8a). In the first half of 2004, there
were five PCP-related exposure calls.
According to CHKS data for the 2003–2004 school
year, 5.8 percent of all Los Angeles County secondary
school students (including 7th, 9th, and 11th
graders, and a small sample of nontraditional students)
who responded to the survey had ever used
LSD or another psychedelic, and 2.9 percent had
used LSD/other psychedelics in the past 30 days (exhibit
10). A breakdown of the data by grade level
illustrated that among responding ninth graders, 4.4
percent had ever used LSD/other psychedelics, and
2.5 percent were current users. Among 11th graders,
5.9 percent had ever used LSD/other psychedelics,
and 2.5 percent used a psychedelic at least once
within the past 30 days.
According to long-term trends calculated from CHKS
data spanning over the last 5 school years (exhibit
12), the pattern of past-30-day LSD/other psychedelics
use among responding secondary school students
(in grades 7, 9, and 11), was similar to usage patterns
seen with other licit and illicit drugs. Current use of
LSD/other psychedelics has been trending downward
since the late 1990s, to a low of 2.8 percent in 2002–
108
EPIDEMIOLOGIC TRENDS IN DRUG ABUSE—Los Angeles County
2003. In 2003–2004, the percentage was slightly
higher at 2.9 percent of all respondents.
According to NFLIS data based on 54,240 analyzed
items reported by participating laboratories within Los
Angeles County between October 2003 and September
2004, 0.7 percent (n=345) of all items analyzed were
found to be PCP.
Nearly 100 PCP arrests were made within the city of
Los Angeles in the first half of 2004, identical to the
number of arrests made during the same time period in
2003. Like amphetamine arrests, PCP arrests accounted
for a very low proportion (less than 1 percent).
The street value of the PCP seized between January
and June 2004 represented approximately 1.5 percent
of the total street value of all drugs seized during that
period. The total amount of PCP seized in the early
part of 2004 (26.3 pounds) was 218 percent higher
than the amount seized during the same period in
2003 (8.3 pounds).
The wholesale price for a gallon of PCP remains at the
high level reported in June 2004, ranging from
$15,000 to $20,000 (exhibit 13). The ounce price,
however, decreased recently, from $600 to $300–$350.
A sherm cigarette dipped in liquid PCP continues to
sell for $20–$30. A tight-knit group of Los Angelesbased
African-American street gang members continues
to produce, supply, and distribute PCP in the Los
Angeles area.
A sheet of approximately 100 doses of LSD has a
wholesale price range of $150–$200. Typically, a
single dose sells for $5–$10. At the retail level, psilocybin
mushrooms cost about $20 per one-eighth
ounce.
Club Drugs
Comprehensive indicator data relating to the use and
abuse of club drugs is still lacking for Los Angeles
County. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately and
comprehensively describe the use and abuse patterns
of club drugs in Los Angeles County. Despite this
lack of traditional indicator information, anecdotal
evidence from a variety of sources continues to circulate
with regard to the availability of club drugs in
Los Angeles County, particularly MDMA (ecstasy)
and gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB).
Collectively, club drugs played a limited role in preliminary
unweighted data accessed from DAWN Live!
for the first half of 2004. Fifty of the 4,688 major substances
of abuse reported in the Los Angeles division
were MDMA (ecstasy), and 2 were GHB (exhibit 7).
Proceedings of the Community Epidemiology Work Group, Vol. II, January 2005