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. 2009 Aug 12:4:17.
doi: 10.1186/1747-597X-4-17.

Methamphetamine use and rates of incarceration among street-involved youth in a Canadian setting: a cross-sectional analysis

M-J Milloy  1 , Thomas Kerr, Jane Buxton, Julio Montaner, Evan Wood
Affiliations

Methamphetamine use and rates of incarceration among street-involved youth in a Canadian setting: a cross-sectional analysis

M-J Milloy et al. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. .

Abstract

Background: Given concerns over rising use of methamphetamine, especially among street-involved youth, and the links between exposure to the correctional system and the production of drug-related harm, we sought to assess the relationship between ever using methamphetamine and reporting ever being incarcerated in the At-Risk Youth Survey (ARYS) in Vancouver, Canada.

Methods: The relationship between ever being imprisoned and ever using methamphetamine was estimated using a multivariate logistic regression analysis while also considering potentially confounding secondary demographic, social and behavioural variables.

Results: Of the 478 youth recruited into ARYS between September 2005 and October 2006, 385 (80.5%) reported ever being incarcerated overnight or longer. In the multivariate model, methamphetamine use was independently associated with ever being incarcerated (Adjusted Odds Ratio: 1.79, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.03 - 3.13).

Conclusion: Incarceration was very common in this cohort and strongly linked with ever using methamphetamine. This finding is of concern and, along with the previously identified risks of drug-related harm associated with incarceration, supports the development of novel public policy, such as community-based drug treatment, to address the use of methamphetamine among street youth.

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