[Preliminary survey of illegal drug misuse among Japanese high school students]

For several years, amphetamine misuse by high school students has been increasing in Japan. The Japanese National Police Agency announced that the third widespread use of amphetamines has started, especially among adolescents. However, there are few data on misuse of amphetamines or other substance abuse among high school students except for solvent inhalation. This is a preliminary survey report concerning substance abuse and substance-related problems among high school students. We surveyed 3393 high school students from 8 high schools in Kanagawa Prefecture and Kyushu Area on drinking and smoking status, and experience of illegal substance use. The results showed that 5.1% of the high school students had experiences of solvents inhalation, 1.1% of marijuana use, and 0.8% of amphetamine use. Around these illegal drug misusers, there were many reserves, such as students who experienced temptation to use solvents (13.6%), marijuana (2.4%), and amphetamines (2.5%), and those who responded that they wanted to use solvents (3.7%), marijuana (3.5%), and amphetamines (2.4%) if they were tempted. The prevalence of illegal drug misusers and reserves was not significantly different between male and female students, and they were concentrated among problem drinkers by the QF Scale and among current smokers. Prevalence of illegal drug misuse among Japanese high school students can not be estimated from the results of the survey because the subjects were limited to two areas and a small number of schools.