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. 2021 Jan;13(1):18-28.
doi: 10.22122/ahj.v13i1.296.

Trends in Poly Drug Use-associated Deaths based on Confirmed Analytical Toxicology Results in Tehran, Iran, in 2011-2016

Maryam Akhgari  1 , Fariba Sardari-Iravani  1 , Masoud Ghadipasha  2
Affiliations

Trends in Poly Drug Use-associated Deaths based on Confirmed Analytical Toxicology Results in Tehran, Iran, in 2011-2016

Maryam Akhgari et al. Addict Health. 2021 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Poly drug use is a public health threat causing morbidity and mortality all over the world. Combined use of licit and illicit drugs is among the possible causes of death. In this retrospective analytical study, we evaluated forensic toxicology analysis results from 2011 to 2016 in Tehran province, Iran.

Methods: All deaths related to poly drug use and referred to the Legal Medicine Organization, Tehran during the 6-year study period were evaluated. Postmortem samples were analyzed to detect alcohols, and prescription and illicit drugs using headspace gas chromatography (HSGC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) in a forensic toxicology laboratory. Manner of death, demographic characteristics, and different drug categories in postmortem samples were analyzed.

Findings: A total of 1388 poly drug use-associated deaths were investigated during the 6-year study period. Overall, victims were mostly young men of 20-40 years of age (56.8%). The male to female ratio was 7:16. Methadone (n = 660; 47.6%) and amphetamine type stimulants (ATS) (n = 657; 47.3%) were in the highest category for poly drug use-associated deaths. Moreover, in some cases, opium (n = 458; 32.9%), tramadol (n = 389; 28.0%), and tricyclic antidepressants (n = 151; 10.9%) had been used with other drugs.

Conclusion: The present study provides information about poly drug use-associated deaths in Tehran and highlights the major role of substance abuse in death.

Keywords: Amphetamine; Forensic toxicology; Methadone; Public health; Substance-related disorders.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Number of poly drug use-associated deaths in different age groups of men and women in Tehran, Iran, in 2011-2016
Figure 2
Figure 2
Frequency distribution of number of drugs detected in postmortem samples of poly drug use-associated death cases in Tehran, Iran, in 2011-2016
Figure 3
Figure 3
The most common prescription and illicit drugs detected in postmortem samples of 1388 cases of poly drug use-associated deaths in Tehran, Iran, in 2011-2016
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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