Impacto das drogas na saúde física e mental de dependentes químicos / Drug use impact in drug addicts' physical and mental health

Pesquisa qualitativa e exploratória -desenvolvida em 2012 e 2013 -em uma unidade de reabilitação para dependentes químicos no Paraná, com objetivo de verificar o impacto do uso de drogas na saúde física e mental do dependente químico. Foram entrevistados vinte dependentes químicos em tratamento. Os dados foram coletados mediante entrevista semiestruturada e tratados com a técnica de análise categorial temática. Os resultados demonstraram impactos na condição física do dependente químico relacionados à intoxicaçãopor drogas, estado de abstinência, alterações de alimentação, sono, higiene e aparência pessoal. Em relação ao impacto das drogas na saúde mental, os resultados apontaram a presença de comorbidades psiquiátricas, como: esquizofrenia e transtorno afetivo bipolar, bem como alterações de pensamento, percepção, memória, cognição e comportamento. Conclui-se que as drogas ocasionam graves impactos na saúde física e mental dos dependentes químicos a partir de consequências nocivas na condição física, no autocuidado, no pensamento, na cognição e no comportamento.

This is a qualitative study of exploratory method, developedin2012 and 2013,in a rehab unity to drug addicts, Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil, its aim is verify the drug use impact in addicts' physical and mental health. Twenty drug addicts in treatment were interviewed.Data collected by through of semi-structured interviews andprocessed using the categorical thematic analysis.The results showed impacts on physical medical condition related to drug poisoning, the state of abstinence, changes on feed, sleep, rest, hygiene and personal appearance.Regarding the impact of substance abuse in mental health, the results indicated the presence of psychiatric comorbidies as schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder, thought changes, perception, memory and cognition, also behavioral changes. As conclusion, drugs are responsible for huge impacts in addicts' physical and mental health considering the harmful consequences in the physical conditions, self-care, thought, cognition and in the behavior.

Neuropsychological dysfunction related to earlier occupational exposure to mercury vapor

We assessed the neuropsychological test performances of 26 patients (mean age = 41.5 ± 6.1 years; mean years of education = 9.8 ± 1.8; 20 males) diagnosed with chronic occupational mercurialism who were former workers at a fluorescent lamp factory. They had been exposed to elemental mercury for an average of 10.2 ± 3.8 years and had been away from this work for 6 ± 4.7 years. Mean urinary mercury concentrations 1 year after cessation of work were 1.8 ± 0.9 æg/g creatinine. Twenty control subjects matched for age, gender, and education (18 males) were used for comparison. Neuropsychological assessment included attention, inhibitory control, verbal and visual memory, verbal fluency, manual dexterity, visual-spatial function, executive function, and semantic knowledge tests. The Beck Depression Inventory and the State and Trait Inventory were used to assess depression and anxiety symptoms, respectively. The raw score for the group exposed to mercury indicated slower information processing speed, inferior performance in psychomotor speed, verbal spontaneous recall memory, and manual dexterity of the dominant hand and non-dominant hand (P < 0.05). In addition, the patients showed increased depression and anxiety symptoms (P < 0.001). A statistically significant correlation (Pearson) was demonstrable between mean urinary mercury and anxiety trait (r = 0.75, P = 0.03). The neuropsychological performances of the former workers suggest that occupational exposure to elemental mercury has long-term effects on information processing and psychomotor function, with increased depression and anxiety also possibly reflecting the psychosocial context.