“There is a new drug in the schedule”: The Criminalization of Cannabis in Canada

Canada has recently concluded its prohibition on the recreational use of cannabis, which lasted for nearly a century. However, when cannabis was first criminalized in 1923, there was effectively no use of it in Canada at that time, and scholars have struggled to identify the specific reasons for which cannabis was added to the schedule of prohibited drugs. When situated within the drug discourse of the time, the lack of an explanation for criminalization becomes less surprising; the contemporary links between addiction, drug use, and racism likely transformed any prohibitive drug control measures into the kind of policy that did not require debate or analysis on the part of Parliament. Drugs and racial minorities were presented as connected threats to the integrity of the white Canadian population and to moral order, and moral reformers capitalized on this connection to support the criminalization of drugs. While the documentary source of the criminalization of cannabis remains unknown, these discursive conditions are of far greater import in understanding why cannabis was criminalized.

TENDENCY TO ADDICTIVE BEHAVIORS AND ITS LINK WITH LIFE-PURPOSE ORIENTATIONS AND PERSONAL TRAITS

The online study involved 48 people. The study was conducted using three methods: Method for diagnostics on tendency to 13 types of addiction (G. Lozova, 2007); Five-factor personality questionnaire (adaptation by A. Khromov, 2000); Purpose-in-Life Test (adaptation by D. Leontiev, 2000). The offer to participate in the study was distributed on the Internet using the Telegram-messenger. Among the subjects were 32 women and 16 men aged 15 to 30 years. 89.7% of respondents are persons aged 19 to 21 years. It was found that 10.4% of respondents have a high level, 68.7% of respondents have average level and 20.8% of respondents have low level of general tendency to addictive behaviors. Tendencies to Alcohol Addiction, Love Addiction, Food Addiction, Work Addiction, Computer Addiction, Addiction on Healthy Lifestyle occur in more than half of the subjects. Manifestations of tendency to certain types of addictive behavior differ in the male and female parts of the sample. According to the high rates of Tendencies to Love, Food, and Work Addictions, the proportion of men is almost one third higher than the proportion of women. According to the high rates of Tendency to Computer Addiction, the proportion of men is five times higher than the corresponding proportion of women. According to the Alcohol Addiction scale, the percentage of men with an average rate is significantly higher than the corresponding percentage of women, while the percentage of women with a high rate on this scale is almost three times higher than the percentage of men (18.8 and 6.3, respectively). On the scales Game Addiction, Drug Addiction, Smoking Addiction, General Addiction there are significantly more men with both medium and high rates. The Tendency to Religious Addiction, Drug Addiction and Addiction on Healthy Lifestyle is mostly "female". The Tendency to TV Addiction is not expressed in either the male or female parts of the sample. It was found that people with a low level of meaningful in life have Tendencies to Love Addiction and Computer Addiction. Their level of General Tendency to Addictive Behavior is higher. People with a higher rate of meaningful in life differ from people with a low rate in such personal qualities as dominance, search for impressions, extroversion, persistence, responsibility, curiosity, artistry, sensitivity, expressiveness. A low rate of meaningful in life is associated with emotional instability, anxiety, depression, self-criticism, tension. It is established that the Tendency to Computer Addiction and the General Tendency to Addiction are inversely related to the goals, process, performance of life, locus of control-I, locus of control-life and meaningful in life; the Tendency to Computer Addiction is inversely related to persistence, and the General Tendency to Addiction is inversely related to dominance and responsibility. The factor structure of Tendency to Addictive Behavior contains the following components: Meaning as a Protective Factor; Chemical Addictions, Self-Control, Health as Super-Value, Eating Your Emotional Instability, Intersexual Addiction vs Alcohol Addiction and Symbiotic Love.

The resignification as part of logotherapy, for the well-being of young people in a situation of addiction annexation

Objective: Identify the self-perception of young people in a situation of addiction, drug use and the meaning of life, through a workshop focused on logotherapy. Methodology: Qualitative research, with which in addition to the collection of theoretical information on logotherapy and resignification; Data was collected from young people in a situation of addiction, participants of the workshop "The resignification of addiction" through a focus group conducted by FEIDEP specialists. Information that allowed contrasting data in the sections of results and conclusions. Contribución Contribution: Categories were elaborated that reveal the personal interpretation of the prevailing reality regarding the situation that young people live in a situation of addiction annexation, as well as the resignification of it by raising awareness of the possibility of freedom to choose through logotherapy. To achieve the above, the young participants externalized resources that enable a life project based on the capacity for change, motivations, attitudes and emotional skills, to achieve a situation of greater well-being.

ISSUES OF PREVENTING AND FIGHTING FROM THE DRUG ADDICTION AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE

The article analyzes the ways in which the drug spread and its adverse effects, which are of concern and threat to the international community, are based on scientific examples. In addition, the article also describes the fate of young people who become victims of these drugs, especially young people. KEY WORDS: Drug addiction, drug addiction, heroin, opium, Middle East region, Central Asia, South, West Asia, global, extremism, terrorism, arms trafficking, human trafficking.

Intermittent access cocaine self-administration produces psychomotor sensitization: effects of withdrawal, sex and cross-sensitization

The psychomotor activating effects of drugs such as cocaine or amphetamine can change in very different ways – showing sensitization or tolerance – depending on whether they are administered more or less intermittently. This behavioral plasticity is thought to reflect, at least in part, changes in dopamine (DA) neurotransmission, and therefore, may provide insights into how repeated drug use promotes the development of substance use disorders. Indeed, the most widely used preclinical model of cocaine addiction, which involves Long Access (LgA) self-administration procedures, is reported to produce tolerance to cocaine’s psychomotor activating effects and effects on DA activity. This is cited as evidence in support of the view that in addiction, drug-seeking and-taking is motivated to overcome this DA deficiency and associated anhedonia. In contrast, Intermittent Access (IntA) cocaine self-administration is more effective than LgA in producing addiction-like behavior, but sensitizes DA neurotransmission. There is, however, very little information concerning the effects of IntA experience on the psychomotor activating effects of cocaine. The purpose of the studies reported here, therefore, was to determine whether IntA experience produces psychomotor sensitization with similar characteristics to that produced by the intermittent, noncontingent administration of cocaine. It did. The psychomotor sensitization produced by IntA experience with cocaine: (1) was greater after a long (30 days) vs short (1 day) period of withdrawal; (2) was greater in females than males; and (3) resulted in cross-sensitization to another psychomotor stimulant drug, amphetamine. This pattern of cocaine experience-dependent plasticity favors an incentive-sensitization view of addiction.

Isolated Tricuspid Valvectomy: A Series of cases with Intravenous Drug Abuse Associated Tricuspid Valve Endocarditis

Introduction Surgical management for tricuspid valve (TV) endocarditis is usually TV repair or replacement. When repair is not feasible, and concerns for patient recidivism preclude TV replacement, tricuspid valvectomy without replacement is an option to alleviate symptoms and allow time for addiction management. Methods We reviewed our institution's experience with isolated tricuspid valvectomy for cases of intravenous drug use (IVDU)-associated endocarditis (n = 7) from 2009 to 2017. Results The decision for tricuspid valvectomy was based on each patient's comorbid condition and realization of active IVDU. This intervention resulted in 100% perioperative and mid-term survival with a mean follow-up of 25.4 months. One patient required a valve replacement in the long term only after appropriate substance abuse management was completed. Conclusion Cardiac surgeons increasingly encounter patients with active endocarditis who suffer from IVDU addiction. Drug addiction increases the risk for recurrent endocarditis and requires an effective management plan. Multidisciplinary endocarditis care teams may play a pivotal role in improving outcomes by better addressing addiction treatment.

Increased synthetic drug abuse and trends in HIV and syphilis prevalence among female drug users from 2010–2014 from Beijing, China

The objective of this study was to monitor the trend of addiction drug use and its relationship with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among female drug users (FDUs). Serial cross-sectional surveys were conducted during 2010–2014 among FDUs in Beijing to collect information on addiction drug usage, sexual behaviors, and STI prevalence. Characteristics were analyzed and compared between traditional and synthetic drug users among FDUs by logistic regression method. A total of 3859 FDUs were surveyed during 2010–2014, with the median age being 32.7 years old. The proportion of synthetic drug users among FDUs increased from 43.7% in 2010 to 70.7% in 2014. Compared with traditional drug users, synthetic drug users were younger (P < 0.001), lacked education (P < 0.001), were unmarried (P < 0.001), and were non-local residents (P < 0.001). No significant difference was found with condom usage during sexual activity between traditional and synthetic drug FDUs. However, the engagement of commercial sexual activities (P < 0.001) and syphilis prevalence (P < 0.001) among synthetic drug users were significantly higher than traditional drug users. Synthetic drug abuse appears to be correlated with commercial sex behavior and higher syphilis prevalence among FDUs. Tailored strategies on health education to curb the prevalence of synthetic drug abuse are urgently needed in Beijing.