Levels of Use : Drug Use vs. Drug Abuse

History, Pharmacology, and Prevalence
- Methamphetamine Overview Methamphetamine Overview
- Cocaine Overview Cocaine Overview
- Differences between Stimulants Differences between Stimulants
  - Methamphetamine and Amphetamines
  - Methamphetamine and Cocaine
- Heroin Overview Heroin Overview
- Overview of Various Other Illicit Drugs Overview of Various Other Illicit Drugs
Clandestine Labs and Forms of Methamphetamine
- Clandestine Drug Labs Clandestine Drug Labs
- Forms of Methamphetamine Forms of Methamphetamine
  - Introduction
  - Ice
  - Powder
  - Liquid
  - Base
  - Tablets
Levels of Illicit Drug Use and Factors Contributing to Use
- Levels of Use Levels of Use
- Levels of Dependency Levels of Dependency
- Factors Underlying Use and Abuse Factors Underlying Use and Abuse
Health Consequences of Illicit Drug Use
- Health Effects of Methamphetamine Health Effects of Methamphetamine
  - General Health Effects
  - Medical Complications
- Health Effects of Cocaine Health Effects of Cocaine
  - General Health Effects
  - Medical Complications
- Health Effects of Heroin Health Effects of Heroin
  - General Health Effects
  - Medical Complications
- Overdose Overdose
Treatment Modalities and Treatment Settings for Illicit Drug Abuse
- Psychosocial Treatment Psychosocial Treatment
- Pharmacological Treatments Pharmacological Treatments
- Treatment Settings Treatment Settings
Illicit Drug Screening, Brief Intervention, and Treatment Placement
- Screening in Primary Care Settings Screening in Primary Care Settings
  - The Debate
- Screening Methods Screening Methods
- Brief Interventions Brief Interventions
- Referring Users to Treatment Referring Users to Treatment
  - Linking Clients to Services in Arizona

Levels of Illicit Drug Use and Factors Contributing to Use
Levels of Use: Drug Use vs. Drug Abuse

Epidemiologists have found that drug use in and of itself is a limited way of describing and measuring drug consumption and related problems. As a result, they often distinguish between drug use and drug abuse. “Drug use” is used to refer to experimentation or low frequency, typically irregular, use of illicit drugs. It can be considered somewhat analogous to the term “alcohol use.” In contrast, “drug abuse” refers to regular and/or compulsive use of illicit drugs. The purpose of the two terms is to distinguish people on the basis of whether their illicit drug use has or has not become a significant feature of their lifestyle and whether it is likely to have a psychopathological character.[1]

References

(1) American Psychiatric Association. Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients with Substance Use Disorders. Arlington, VA: APA; 2007 Apr. Report No.: 164.

Points of View (1)

Levels of Illicit Drug Use and Factors Contributing to Use Levels of Use: Drug Use vs. Drug Abuse

References

Levels of Illicit Drug Use and Factors Contributing to Use
Levels of Use: Drug Use vs. Drug Abuse