Inhalant Dependence: Data from a Tertiary Care Center in South India

BACKGROUND: This study aims to understand the sociodemographic and clinical profile of inhalant abusers seeking treatment from a tertiary care psychiatric hospital in South India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The clinical charts of patients who utilized the psychiatric services of a tertiary care center in India for over 10 years were examined for the study. RESULTS: The sample had an urban predominance, was mostly unemployed, and was all male. Most of them had an adolescent age of onset of inhalant use (mean — 16.23 years). All patients reported the use of volatile solvents as inhalants. One other substance dependence was identified in more than half of the sample. The psychiatric comorbidity included psychosis and depression. A comparison was made between patients who presented with inhalant dependence only (I) and inhalant-dependent individuals who also used other psychoactive substances apart from nicotine (IP). The inhalant-only group (I) had an earlier mean age at onset of substance use as compared to the IP group. All patients in the I group reported withdrawal symptoms compared to 77% of patients in the (IP) group (P=0.048). The IP group reported a significantly higher occurrence of aggression (54.5 vs. 19%, P=0.02), externalizing symptoms (77.3 vs. 42.9%, P=0.03), and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (50 vs. 14.3%, P=0.02). CONCLUSION: Inhalant dependence is a serious health problem in adolescent subjects and is associated with high comorbidity of other substance dependence, psychiatric disorder, and externalizing spectrum disorder. There is a need for community-based prospective studies in this area from India.