Epidemiology of Inhalant Abuse - Archives - National Institute on ...

and testing <strong>of</strong> validity and reliability <strong>of</strong> instruments and methodological
approaches for the study <strong>of</strong> drug abuse. Various methods were developed
and used to study different populations and different aspects <strong>of</strong> the
problem.
The first drug abuse epidemiologic surveys were conducted in the 1970s.
School-based surveys, studies among imprisoned populations, and studies
with an anthropological emphasis included solvents among the
substances investigated. At this same time, a national network <strong>of</strong>
specialized treatment centers, CIJ, were started. Thus, statistics from
patients in treatment have been available since then.
Three national school surveys have been undertaken, one in 1976 (Chao
and Castro 1976), one in 1985 (Castro et al. 1986), and most recently in
1993 (Medina-Mora et al. 1993). The first two were conducted in urban
cities, and the most recent is the first that includes both rural and urban
populations and provides data statewide. Biannual studies also have been
conducted in Mexico City since 1976.
In 1974, the first household survey was conducted in Mexico City and,
through 1986, six other cities have been included. In 1986, a national
household survey was undertaken among urban populations <strong>of</strong> the
country by the DGE and the IMP (Medina-Mora et al 1989; Tapia et al.
1990). Also during that year, the Ministry <strong>of</strong> Health conducted the
second national household survey. Epidemiologic studies with an
anthropological emphasis focused on the social and cultural problems
related to drug use and the rates <strong>of</strong> use among hidden populations and
among children working on the streets.
In 1987, Ortíz and colleagues (1993) initiated a drug abuse reporting
system (SRID) that has been in operation since that time and has
collected data on 5,098 drug users. This system has provided the
capacity to monitor trends in the problem and has served as an early
warning system. During a 2-month period each year, it gathers
information on antecedents <strong>of</strong> drug use among all populations in 44
health and justice institutions, regardless <strong>of</strong> the subjects’ reason for
entering the institutions.
In 1990, the DGE developed SISVEA and, in 1992, CONADIC
developed a register <strong>of</strong> cases in treatment called SINTRA.
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