Emergency Medicine: Open Access
Open Access
ISSN: 2165-7548
ISSN: 2165-7548
Oscar Garcia-Algar
Hospital del Mar,
Pº Marítimo 25-29, 08003 Barcelona
Spain
Research Article
Unsuspected Exposure to Drugs of Abuse in Children
Author(s): Manzano C, Torres F, Roman L, Hernández M, Villalbí A, Civit E and Oscar Garcia-AlgarManzano C, Torres F, Roman L, Hernández M, Villalbí A, Civit E and Oscar Garcia-Algar
Background: In the last decade, the consumption of drugs of abuse has been steady for most of substances, with a significant increase in the consumption of cannabis and cocaine. The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of unsuspected exposure to drugs of abuse (cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines, opiates, MDMA) in children attending to an urban paediatric emergency department without signs or symptoms suggestive of exposure. Methods: Hair samples were collected from children between 10 and 14 years of age attending the Paediatric Emergency Department of Hospital del Mar in Barcelona during months of January to April 2014. Intervention was developed based on a brief advice and motivational interview for children. We analyzed the presence of drugs of abuse in hair samples by validated methodologies in liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Data were compared to previous stu.. View More»
DOI:
10.4172/2165-7548.1000210