Epidemiological profile of users served in CAPS AD in northeast Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: The use of alcohol and drugs is a growing problem in Brazil and worldwide. Knowing the epidemiology of this population in services for users of psychoactive substances is an imperative to better treat them. Objective: to describe the epidemiological profile of users of a CAPS AD in Northeastern Brazil. Methodology: descriptive, cross-sectional, quantitative study. Through an electronic spreadsheet, 281 medical records of people over 18 years of age who used the service were analyzed. The chi-square test was used considering the significant p factor less than or equal to 0.05. The study was ethically approved. Results: men, mean of 42.06 years, with basic education level and married, formed the majority of the sample. They were statistically relevant: the highest alcohol consumption in men (p = 0.03); higher education among cocaine users (p = 0.0126); greater smoking in the less educated (p = 0.0166); offspring as protection against the use of cocaine (p = 0.0006) and cannabis (p = 0.0004); not having children with less alcohol use (p = 0.0015); early use of cannabis (p = 0.0002) and alcohol (p = 0.0065). Conclusions: public policies expanding access to treatment for drug users are important solutions to this problem.

Keywords: Mental Health, CAPS, Substance-Related Disorders, Epidemiology.