NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE EPIDEMIOLOGIC ...

More often than not, marijuana use in the indicator
data sets was associated with the use of alcohol or
other drugs. Marijuana was more frequently reported
as a secondary substance than as a primary substance
by treatment admissions in the total PMSA in the first
half of 2003, at 15 and 18 percent, respectively (exhibit
2). Among treatment admissions for primary
marijuana use in the total PMSA, 61 percent reported
using additional substances (exhibit 10). More than
one-half (52 percent) reported alcohol abuse, 8 percent
reported cocaine use, 3 percent reported use of
heroin, and 3 percent reported use of opiates other
than heroin. Some 8 percent of admissions used other
secondary substances, primarily hallucinogens, phencyclidine
(PCP), and stimulants.
Persons entering treatment for marijuana use were
young: 43 percent were younger than age 18, and the
median age at admission to treatment was 19 (exhibit
10). Marijuana admissions were primarily male (83
percent) and increasingly likely to be African-
American (53 percent in the first half of 2004, compared
with 46 percent in 2000). A large proportion of
marijuana treatment admissions (62 percent) represented
referrals through the criminal justice system.
Admissions were likely to be experiencing their first
treatment episode (65 percent), and more than onethird
(35 percent) reported daily marijuana use.
Of the 40,000 items from Baltimore tested by the
National Forensic Laboratory in FY 2004, 29 percent
were cannabis.
Prices for marijuana for the second half of 2004 were
reported as $2,390–$4,000 per pound for hydroponic
marijuana or $1,000–$1,600 per pound for commercial
grade marijuana at the wholesale level. Midlevel
prices were $275 per ounce for hydroponic and $130
per ounce for commercial grade. At the retail level,
prices were $35–$60 per one-quarter ounce or $20–
$40 per bag. The price range for hydroponic marijuana
was slightly more for the wholesale-level kilogram
than in the second half of 2003. The lower limit
for commercial-grade marijuana at the wholesalelevel
kilogram was more than in the second half of
2003, but the upper limit was unchanged. The price
range was unchanged for a retail-level quantity of
one-quarter ounce or a bag.
Stimulants
Stimulants other than cocaine were rarely mentioned
as the primary substance of abuse by treatment admissions
(exhibit 2). Nevertheless, the numbers, although
small, increased from 42 admissions in 2000 to 73 in
2003; there were 41 admissions for the first half of
24
EPIDEMIOLOGIC TRENDS IN DRUG ABUSE—Baltimore Metropolitan Area
2004. The majority (63 percent) of the first-half 2004
admissions were for methamphetamine, and 29 percent
were for amphetamine. Treatment admissions for
stimulants increased from 2.0 per 100,000 in 2000 to
3.4 per 100,000 in 2003. Projections for 2004 suggest
that the rate may reach 5.2 per 100,000 in 2004.
Preliminary unweighted data accessed from DAWN
Live! indicated 49 ED reports of amphetamine and
four reports of methamphetamine in the first half of
2004.
Other Drugs
Drugs other than alcohol, cocaine, heroin, opiates
(other than heroin), marijuana, and stimulants were
responsible for less than 2 percent of treatment admissions
in the first half of 2004 (exhibit 2). Preliminary
unweighted data for the first half of 2004, accessed
from DAWN Live!, indicated 32 ED reports of methylenedioxymethamphetamine
(MDMA), 21 of PCP,
10 of inhalants, 8 of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD),
3 of ketamine, and 2 of gamma hydroxybutyrate
(GHB).
Treatment admissions for benzodiazepines and other
tranquilizers declined slightly, from 5.0 per 100,000
population age 12 and older to 3.9 per 100,000 in
2003. Benzodiazepines were mentioned in 11 percent
of drug-related ED episodes in 2002, representing a
small (2 percent) increase from 59 mentions per
100,000 population in 2001 to 60 per 100,000 in 2002.
Treatment admissions for barbiturates and other sedatives
increased slightly, from 2.5 per 100,000 population
age 12 and older in 2001 to 4.2 per 100,000 in
2003. Barbiturate mentions also increased significantly
in drug-related ED episodes, from 13 per 100,000
population in 2001 to 14 per 100,000 in 2002.
Treatment admissions for LSD remained relatively
stable, at about 2.5 per 100,000 population age 12
and over. Treatment admissions for PCP were erratic,
but they were between 2.5 and 5.0 per 100,000 population
age 12 and older from 2001 through 2003. Between
2001 and 2003, treatment admissions for inhalants
declined from 0.9 per 100,000 population age
12 and older to 0.7 per 100,000, while treatment admissions
for over-the-counter drugs rose from 0.3 per
100,000 to 0.5 per 100,000.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES RELATED TO DRUG ABUSE
The annual AIDS case report rate for 2003 for the
Baltimore PMSA (39 cases per 100,000) ranked fifth
behind New York City (59 per 100,000), Miami (46
Proceedings of the Community Epidemiology Work Group, Vol. II, January 2005