ABSTRACT
The association between physical and/or sexual abuse and substance abuse in women has frequently been noted. This study sought to identify the frequency with which such a history of child abuse was reported by a group of females admitted to a treatment centre for substance abuse. All women (70) admitted in 1991 and 1992 to the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Centre, Caura, Trinidad, were interviewed about the occurrence of either physical or sexual abuse in childhood or adolescence. All men (95) admitted for alcohol dependence were also interviewed and served as a comparison group. Twenty female clients (28.6 per cent) admitted to being abused as children, 36 (51.4 per cent) denied any history of child abuse while 14 (20 per cent) refused to respond. Subgroups of alcohol- and cocaine-dependent women gave similar frequencies of positive histories of child abuse (26.9 per cent and 29.6 per cent respectively). Only 12.6 per cent of male alcoholic admissions gave a positive history of child abuse and one-third (33.7 per cent) of the sample refused to respond to the question. There is a need to explore the issues relating to the physical and sexual abuse in childhood as it may be a factor in the pathogenesis of substance abuse in women. More detailed sexual assessment tools and treatment directed at the sequelae of child abuse may also be in this population (AU)
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Child , Adolescent , Substance-Related Disorders , Child Abuse , Child Abuse, Sexual , Alcoholism , Cocaine , Sexual HarassmentABSTRACT
Of 1089 healthy blood donors screened for HTLV-I using ABBOTTS HTLV-I EIA: 18 (1.7 percent) were positive; and 16 (1.5 percent) were confirmed positive using HTLV-I/11 Cambridge Biothec Western Blot method. HTLV-I antibodies were found amongst the major ethnic groups, viz. Africans, 11 cases (68.75 percent) and East Indians 4 cases (25 percent). The mean age of the donors who tested positive for HTLV-I was 30.75 years; and the male to female ratio was 4.3:1. (AU)
Subject(s)
Humans , Adult , Male , Female , Blood Donors , HTLV-I Antibodies/blood , HTLV-I Infections/epidemiology , Africa/ethnology , Age Factors , Blotting, Western , HTLV-I Infections/ethnology , Immunoenzyme Techniques , India/ethnology , Prevalence , Prospective Studies , Retrospective Studies , Sex Factors , Trinidad and Tobago/epidemiologyABSTRACT
A prospective study was done on road traffic fatalities occurring during the period Janauary, 1987 to November, 1988. Complete autopsies were performed on all such fatalities and a 20 ml sample of blood from a cardiac chamber in 20 victims was examined at the Forensic Science Centre for ethanol, cannabinoids and CNS narcotics by standard modern methods. Of the 35 fatalities, there was 18 pedestrians, 10 drivers, 5 passengers ( 2 of whom were alighting from the vehicle) and 2 pedal cyclists. The majority of victims were < 40 years old (range 3 - 91 years) and were males (sex ratio 4.8:1). Of the 20 victims whose blood was examined, 8 (40 percent were positive for ethanol, 5 of whom were drivers, 3 were positive for cannabinoids and 3 victims, 1 a driver, was positive for both ethanol and cannabinoids. None of the blood samples was positive for narcotics. Nine victims died instantly in the accidents, 12 were dead on arrival at hospital, and 6 died less than 24 hours after arrival at hospital. Twenty-six victims had cerebral haemorrhage, 8 of the drivers had multiple fractured ribs with haemopneumothorax and 2 had lacerated hearts. The data from this study reinforce the need to introduce the Breathanalyser test and compulsory seat belt usuage and to institute training for paramedics accompanying ambulances (AU)
