Substance Use Disorders Among Industry Workers in Egypt

Background and Objective: Substance abuse in the workplace is a major public health problem. The objectives of this study are to: (1) to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of substance abuse, drug-related problems, and drug dependence among industrial workers; (2) to identify patients' views of the pros and cons of their drug use and their treatment readiness; and (3) to assess the severity of substance abuse according to the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) scale in substance users. Subjects and Methods: A total of 353 industrial workers from 5 factories in 10th of Ramadan city in Egypt were included in the study. The participants were interviewed to collect sociodemographic and clinical data using the Structural Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-Axis I (SCID-I), the Drug Use Disorder Identification Test (DUDIT), DUDIT-Extended version and the Addiction Severity Index (ASI). The participants were screened for drug abuse by urine analysis. Results: The prevalence rates of smoking and substance abuse were 27.6% and 18.3%, respectively. The most commonly abused drugs were tramadol (66.2%), cannabis (55.4%), and alcohol (38.5%). Compared with controls, smokers and substance users were more likely to be males and were older. Smokers were 7 times more likely to use substances. Substance dependence was associated with a younger age of substance use onset and alcohol abuse. Conclusions: Smoking and substance abuse are common among industrial workers. Tramadol and cannabis are the most commonly abused substances. Smoking, older age, and male sex are correlates of substance abuse. Alcohol abuse is associated with dependence.