UPDATE ON DRUG-DEPENDENCE IN THE ELDERLY

The present status of drug abuse patterns among the elderly is complex. As we learn more about drug dependence, stereotyped ideas have given way to the realization that medical, psychiatric, environmental and socioeconomic factors play a major role in the way drugs are perceived and misused by the elderly. While opiates use persists, many elderly are now in methadone treatment programs where the median age continues to rise. Presently the principal drugs of abuse for the aged are in the category of depressants including alcohol. Mixed drug use is particularly hazardous. Hallucinogens, marijuana and stimulants are primarily drugs of the youth culture. © 1979, Florida State University College of Criminology and Criminal Justice. All rights reserved.