Changing Pattern of Substance Abuse in Patients Attending a Regional Psychiatric Rehabilitation Center at Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia

Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to record the prevalence and the characteristics of substance abusers from the year 2007 to 2017 and also to find the most prevalent form of substance abuse and association, if any, between the abusers and their demographic characteristics. Materials and Methods: Descriptive and retrospective medical record review included patients of substance abuse attending a rehabilitation center in Buraidah from January 2007 to December 2017. A majority of 5,639 patients (63.6%) belonged to the age group of 31–50 years. Twenty-five and thirty-nine percent patients had secondary and higher education, respectively. Notably, more than half of them were unemployed. The commonly abused single drugs were amphetamine (40%), cannabis (11%), and alcohol (7%). High school goers’ cases have continuously spiked over the years. Substance abuse over the years from 2007 to 2017 was above 11% in 2007 and 2015. From 2009 to 2014, it was between 8 and 10%. However, the number of cases reported dropped to below 9% from 2016 onward. Amphetamine saw a downfall except peaking in 2010 and 2015. On the other hand, there was no substantial jump in the abuse of alcohol and cannabis over the years, but an increasing use from 2015 onward was visible. There was also a gradual rise over the years in the abuse of polysubstance (more than three drugs). Conclusion: There is a growing trend in the use of polysubstance and the combination of two substances. There is a high incidence of drug abuse in high schoolers and also in patients in the age groups of 10–30 years.