Environmental and familial factors in drug use among commercial drivers in suburban public transport

BACKGROUND: A study was conducted in 2013 on the lack of accurate statistics on the environmental and family factors behind the use of drugs by drivers of public transport. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Overall, 1176 drivers of buses, mini-buses, vans, all kinds of trucks, and cars were randomly selected proportionately according to the type of vehicles. The capture-recapture sampling method was used to determine the prevalence rate of drug use among commercial drivers. Trained experts collected data regarding the environmental and family factors behind the use of addictive drugs. Urinalysis was performed by the Rapid Test method (ACON, San Diego, USA). To providing descriptive and analytical statistics the Kruskal–Wallis and Mantel–Haenszel methods, logistic regression, and Chi-square tests were used. RESULTS: The mean age of the drivers was 39.9 ± 9.7 years. The results of the experiment were positive in 14.1% of the drivers. A significant difference observed between addicted and nonaddicted drivers related to cold and heat (P < 0.001) and lack of facilities (P = 0.006) as the most influencing factors. The most important environmental factor was family poverty (P < 0.001), followed by marital status and its problems (P = 0.002), a large number of children (P = 0.006), and family disputes (P = 0.012). A family history of addiction was 2.5 times more among addicted drivers. CONCLUSION: Prevalence of addiction was 14.1%. Among the environmental factors, cold and heat, lack of facilities, family factors, and a family history of addiction greatly influenced addiction.