NCJ Number
164699
Journal
American Journal on Addictions Volume: 5 Issue: 3 Dated: (Summer 1996) Pages: 231-240
Date Published
1996
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Two ethnic groups in Minnesota were studied with respect to the course of their opiate drug dependence; one group used heroin by injection and one group used opium by smoking.
Abstract
The participants were 57 Laotian Hmong immigrants who were all opium smokers and 80 native-born Americans who were primarily white and tended to be heroin injectors. All were evaluated and treated at the Substance Disorder Program at the University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics in Minneapolis. The analysis revealed that those born in the United States were more likely to be employed and had more education, a younger age at onset of opiate use, higher addiction scores, more legal problems, a spending of about 50 times more money per day on drugs, more use of treatment, and more use of self-help methods. The Hmong subjects included more men and more who were married and living with family. They were also characterized by longer periods of abstinence and more of certain psychological symptoms. Differences were related to culture, type of opiate, and immigrant/refugee status. Similarities in the types and severity of certain drug-related problems and family histories of drug abuse suggested that certain core features of drug dependence persist despite differences in ethnicity and the type of opiate used. Tables and 22 references (Author abstract modified)