ArticleDrug and alcohol dependence2015
Addiction and treatment experiences among active methamphetamine users recruited from a township community in Cape Town, South Africa: A mixed-methods study.
Article in Drug and alcohol dependence, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Effect of exercise versus cognitive behavioural therapy or no intervention on anxiety, depression, fitness and quality of life in adults with previous methamphetamine dependency: a systematic review.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2018Pooled it
- A novel brief treatment for methamphetamine use disorders in South Africa: a randomised feasibility trial.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2021Trial
- "Cigarettes led me back to smoking tik": lived experience perspectives on tobacco use during substance use treatment and recovery in South Africa.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2026Article
- A stakeholder-driven approach to designing a peer recovery coach role for implementation in community-oriented primary care teams in South Africa.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2025Article
- Narcotics Anonymous attendees' perceptions and experiences of substitute behaviors in the Western Cape, South Africa.Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and policy · 2023Article
- Smoked drug use in patients with TB is associated with higher bacterial burden.The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease · 2023Article
- COVID 19-impact on substance use treatment utilization and provision in South Africa.Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and policy · 2022Article
- Substance use referral, treatment utilization, and patient costs associated with problematic substance use in people living with HIV in Cape Town, South Africa.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2022Article
- Factors associated with patient-reported experiences and outcomes of substance use disorder treatment in Cape Town, South Africa.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2022Article
- Methamphetamine Dysregulation of the Central Nervous System and Peripheral Immunity.The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics · 2021Review
- Non-coding RNA: insights into the mechanism of methamphetamine neurotoxicity.Molecular and cellular biochemistry · 2021Review
- Reduced fractional anisotropy in projection, association, and commissural fiber networks in neonates with prenatal methamphetamine exposure.Developmental neurobiology · 2020Article
- Problematic alcohol use among fathers in Kenya: Poverty, people, and practices as barriers and facilitators to help acceptance.The International journal on drug policy · 2020Article
- "Someone who is in this thing that I am suffering from": The role of peers and other facilitators for task sharing substance use treatment in South African HIV care.The International journal on drug policy · 2019Article
- The Opioid Epidemic in Africa And Its Impact.Current addiction reports · 2018Article
- Prenatal methamphetamine exposure is associated with corticostriatal white matter changes in neonates.Metabolic brain disease · 2018Article
- Criterion validity of self-reports of alcohol, cannabis, and methamphetamine use among young men in Cape Town, South Africa.International journal of mental health and addiction · 2018Article
- Brief interventions to address substance use among patients presenting to emergency departments in resource poor settings: a cost-effectiveness analysis.Cost effectiveness and resource allocation : C/E · 2018Article
- Openness to adopting evidence-based practice in public substance use treatment in South Africa using task shifting: Caseload size matters.Substance abuse · 2018Article
- The role of substance use coping in the relation between childhood sexual abuse and depression among methamphetamine users in South Africa.Psychological trauma : theory, research, practice and policy · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSince 2000, there has been a dramatic increase in methamphetamine use in South Africa, but little is known about the experiences of out-of-treatment users. This mixed-methods study describes the substance use histories, addiction symptoms, and treatment experiences of a community-recruited sample of methamphetamine users in Cape Town.
methodsUsing respondent driven sampling, 360 methamphetamine users (44% female) completed structured clinical interviews to assess substance abuse and treatment history and computerized surveys to assess drug-related risks. A sub-sample of 30 participants completed in-depth interviews to qualitatively explore experiences with methamphetamine use and drug treatment.
resultsParticipants had used methamphetamine for an average of 7.06 years (SD=3.64). They reported using methamphetamine on an average of 23.49 of the past 30 days (SD=8.90); 60% used daily. The majority (90%) met ICD-10 criteria for dependence, and many reported severe social, financial, and legal consequences. While only 10% had ever received drug treatment, 90% reported that they wanted treatment. In the qualitative interviews, participants reported multiple barriers to treatment, including beliefs that treatment is ineffective and relapse is inevitable in their social context. They also identified important motivators, including desires to be drug free and improve family functioning.
conclusionThis study yields valuable information to more effectively respond to emerging methamphetamine epidemics in South Africa and other low- and middle-income countries. Interventions to increase uptake of evidence-based services must actively seek out drug users and build motivation for treatment, and offer continuing care services to prevent relapse. Community education campaigns are also needed.
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