| Abstract [eng] |
Background. According to the scientific material of the last decade major part of health problems in Europe and all around the World are due to psychical and behavioural disorders. It has become an economical burden for the countries whereas psychical health services have become one of the major concerns. The latest psychological and social researches and studies suggest that the most vulnerable part of the society is youth. So, the goal of this study is to determine the prevalence of using psychoactive substances amongst first-third year students of Vilnius University Medicine Faculty and factors influencing it. Methods. Anonymous inquiry was performed in the year 2007. A self-administered questionnaire of The European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD), which was modified and applied for the exploratory crop, was completed by 556 first-third year students of Vilnius University Medicine Faculty. The data was analysed using the statistical programe SPSS 15.0. Results. In total 18,3% of Vilnius University Medicine Faculty first-third year students reported smoking. The majority of them smoked every day. Boys students reported significantly greater smoking then girls students (p < 0,05). 77,3% of students reported using alcohol. Most often used alcoholic drinks were wine and beer. 68,7% of students used coffee whereas half of them used energetic drinks as well. Caffeine containing tablets were not popular amongst the students. 12,1% of those who studied had at least once tried drugs (more boys comparing to girls (p<0,05)), about 3% of students constantly used drugs. Most often used agents were marihuana or hashish and amphetamines. Tobacco, caffeine containing drinks were more frequently used during the session whereas alcohol consumption seemed to be more frequent after the session (p<0,05). The main factors influencing the use of psychoactive materials were the need for relaxation as well as pleasure experience and stress relief. Conclusions. Psychoactive substances of licit variety are so common as well as the fact that consumption after entering the High Medicine School is not diminishing but, on the contrary, there is a tendency of increased consumption during the session. |
