NCJ Number
204898
Date Published
March 2004
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This DAWN (Drug Abuse Warning Network) report presents data on the number and types of drug-related visits to 14 hospitals in the Atlanta metropolitan area in 2002.
Abstract
Currently hospitals in the Atlanta area and 20 other metropolitan areas participate in the DAWN network, as they follow standard procedures for keeping records on cases that have involved medical treatment for drug abuse. This 2002 report for DAWN hospitals in the Atlanta area indicates that of the 1.3 million visits to the participating hospital emergency departments (ED's) in 2002, approximately 1 percent (14,211) were related to drug abuse. During 2002, the most common drugs involved in these ED visits were cocaine (8,947), alcohol in combination with other drugs (6,743), marijuana (3,602), benzodiazepines (1,267), and narcotic analgesics (1,143). Atlanta had 239 cocaine-related ED visits per 100,000 population in 2002, a rate similar to that in 1995. More than two-thirds of cocaine-related ED visits also involved other drugs. Between 1995 and 2002, the rate of ED visits that involved marijuana increased 53 percent, from 63 to 96 visits per 100,000 population. Among the 21 DAWN areas, Atlanta ranked in the top 6 regarding ED visits that involved cocaine and marijuana. 9 figures