The 18th International Conference on HIV/AIDS was held in Vienna on 18th-23rd July. The conference participants signed a declaration that claims that the criminalisation of drug use leads to the spread of HIV/AIDS and asks for a full reorientation of drug policy.
Currently, Mexico serves as a transit country for trafficking illegal drugs into the U.S. Since 2006, more than 23,000 drug-related deaths have occurred in the country, after the new president Felipe Calderon broke the balance in government-drug cartel relationships. At the same time, drug use in Mexico is escalating; the life-long prevalence of illicit drug use rose from 4.2% to 5.7% between 2002 and 2007. Drug policy in Mexico is almost non-existent, with an abstinence approach prevailing. This year, the first graduates of the Master's degree in addictions will graduate from Instituto Kanakil in Merida, where Czech expertise has been provided to them. To learn more about the experience in cooperation, visit the new website www.narativ.cz, which provides post-modern approaches to psychotherapy and addictions.
In 2008, a low-threshold facility with a syringe exchange programme was closed in Victoria, Canada. A recently published study shows the impact - the number of syringes exchanged decreased by 40%, only one quarter of the previous amount was returned for disposal, and thus the rest remained unaccounted for. The same situation could happen in Prague, where one of the contact facilities was closed in December 2010 and was not allowed to perform the service on newly purchased premises.
Men who consume more alcohol on drinking days are at increased risk of death even if their average amount of alcohol over time isn't excessive, according to researchers who said that drinking quantity and frequency influence mortality more than average consumption over time.
Amsterdam - The chairman of the Dutch police union NPB Hans van Duijn says it is pointless to fight against the supply of cannabis. He thinks it only leads to more crime and he would much rather see soft drugs legalised in The Netherlands. Further, Hans van Duijn is in favour of letting long time addicts use hard drugs under supervision. In his opinion this is the only way to effectively fight drug related crime.
A $4-million study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse will examine the neurobiological effects of marijuana use in what is billed as the first comprehensive study of marijuana addiction, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported March 14, 2008.
Vigabatrin, an anticonvulsive drug marketed by Ovation Pharmaceuticals, has been "fast-tracked" by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and could become the first drug approved by the agency as a treatment for cocaine and methamphetamine dependence, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Jan. 22.
The developing world will see 27 million new cases of cancer by mid-century because of tobacco use and poverty, according to researchers.
Singapore — 23 January 2008 — A study in a Wiley-Blackwell journal – Respirology – finds that the development of bullous lung disease occurs in marijuana smokers approximately 20 years earlier than tobacco smokers.
Two years ago, Oregon enacted the toughest anti-methamphetamine laws in the country, resulting in the near elimination of local meth labs and meth toxic waste dumps. The supply of meth on Portland, Ore. streets, however, is greater than ever, because of the influx of meth from Mexican drug cartels, The WestLinn (Ore.) Tidings reported on Nov. 29.
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