New Inhalant Study in India: Results Released

Via the Hindustan Times in India:

The results of a recent study by the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (“Profile of inhalant users seeking treatment at a de-addiction centre in north India”) were released.  The study was carried out by the institute’s psychiatry department and published in the May issue of the Indian Journal of Medical Research.  It was based on the records of 92 treatment seekers for inhalant addiction at the institute’s Drug De-addiction and Treatment Centre over 10 years (2002-2011).and found that the principal sources of inhalant abuse were typewriter correction fluids and the majority of subjects initiated it out of curiosity.

• The most common inhalant used was typewriter correction fluid (73.6%), followed by typewriter diluent fluid (19.5%) and glue (6.9%). 
•  The mean age of onset of inhalant use was 16.3 years.
  

Inhalant Abuse on the Rise in India

Via the Times of India: 

The articles notes that the Coimbatore government hospital sees at least five to 10 new cases of inhalant addiction every month and that the majority of the abusers are teens.

Substantial Increase in Inhalant Use Among Children in India

Via Press Information Bureau in India

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) plans to bring awareness to the problem of inhalant abuse by children. The Commission visited five NGOs “to review the prevention, reduction and rehabilitation strategies adopted by the organizations for those suffering from different kinds of addiction.”

According to a study from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, the use of “volatile solvents” among children has increased substantially – from 31.0 % in 2008 to 40.5% in 2009.

Adolescents and Woman Turn to Inhalant Abuse

More and more adolescents and woman are turning towards inhalant abuse in Kashmir Valley. India.

According to psychiatrists the drug abuse epedmic is due to the need for citizens to cope with conditions of the community.

Via dawn.com in Pakistan

Petition to Check Substance Abuse

Courtesy of the Hindustan Times
Delhi, India

A petition has been filed with the Delhi High Court, asking that the government and schools check students for substance abuse.

The goal of the petitioner was to make parents and students aware of the dangers of inhalant abuse.

The petition was inspired by a local news report showing that students at a top school in the area had been caught abusing products.

Inhalant Abuse as a Deterrent to Hunger

Via NDTV.com in India:

International Children’s Rights Day was celebrated this past November 20th. In honor of the awareness day, NDTV published an article on street kids and substance abuse that features inhalant abuse.

The piece opens with the case of a 12 year-old runaway who regularly sniffs glue to “keep hunger at bay.” The article then mentions that “two in every 10 street children in Bangalore, are victims of substance abuse” and that the younger ones start with tobacco and then move to inhalants before transitioning to alcohol.

Dendrite & Erazek Addiction on The Rise in India

From the Assam Tribune in India:

The article points out that “Dendrite” and “Erazex” addiction is on the rise in India.

“Dendrite is an adhesive used by carpenters and also for repairing punctured tyres. Erazex is a whitener fluid for correcting typing or writing errors.” Both contain toluene.

Case on Toluene Abuse in India

In our Google Alerts this am we came across an interesting case of Toluene Abuse in India.

In the case it notes "The commonest source is typewriter erasing fluid and thinner which contains toluene" That synopsis can be found via the link here.

Correction Fluid Use in India

From the Economic Times in India:

The articles calls sniffing correction fluid a “silent but rapidly growing addictive item among adolescents.” A Pune-based school recently found four students abusing correction fluid-‘“using it as an inhalant to get a high.”

“The students who were caught revealed that they pour the whitener on a kerchief and use it as an inhalant. They also apply it on their nails and lick it. One of them said he got a high lasting for as long as three to four hours.”

17 Year-Old Crashes Car After Huffing

From the Palladium-Item in Richmond, Indiana:

Last Thursday morning, a 17-year-old teen allegedly huffed dust remover before crashing his parents’ car into two guardrails.

Witnesses report that he was “swerving and spitting out of his car’s window prior to the crash.”

The automobile was towed from the scene of the crash and he was treated and released from the hospital. The Police have charged the teen with “driving under the influence, operating while intoxicated and inhaling intoxicating vapors, all Class A misdemeanors.”

Inhalant Abuse on the Rise in India

According to the Calcutta Telegraph, inhalant abuse amongst teens in India is on the rise.

“S. Haque Nizamie, the director of the Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), said the use of inhalants among children is increasing at an alarming rate.” The director added, “cases of inhalants are increasing day by day” and children are mostly using inhalants while in school, without parents or teachers even realizing it.

The article points out that most of the children are “between the age group of 13 and 16 years” and “this month around 15 cases of substance use and inhalants were received at the child psychiatry ward of the CIP.”

Products used include: petrol, diesel, kerosene, whitener, fevicol, cough syrups and brown sugar.

Inhalant Use in India

Expressindia.com's "Region Drug Abuse Statistics Way Ahead of National Average" indicates that inhalant abuse is one of several drug problems that are being faced in Chandigarh, India. The Postgraduate Institute De-addiction Centre handles many of these cases.

While patients of all age groups and economic status are victims of drug abuse, substance abuse is fairly common among teenagers and young adults below 25 years of age. Common inhalant abuse includes white ink, petrol fumes and iodex. “We see around 30 cases of inhalant abuse a year and the number is increasing,” say doctors at the Centre.