Inhalant use patterns among Eskimo school children in western Alaska

An inhalant use survey was administered to 376 school children in 14 isolated villages. Questions in the survey elicited gender and ethnic distribution, frequency and duration of use, age of onset, reasons for using and inhalant of choice. These characteristics were further examined by dividing users into 2 groups based on use frequency and duration, i.e., Light Users and Heavy Users. Lifetime prevalence was 48%. Most inhalant use appeared to be sporadic, transient and occurring in social context. Heavy Users differed from Light Users in that they were more likely to be male, have an earlier age of onset, have different ethnic distribution and use inhalants in response to affect. These children may represent an inhalant dependent subgroup. This finding of user heterogeneity has important implications for the development of effective prevention and treatment programs.