Brussels, 16/11/2011 (Agence Europe) - Drug use in Europe seems to have stabilised over the last two years. There are signs that cocaine use might have peaked and that cannabis use may be continuing to decline among young people. However, new synthetic drugs remain a matter of concern and are one of the major challenges to be faced over the next few years, said the Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) as it published its annual report on Tuesday 15 November.
Some EU countries, the report notes, have indicated that synthetic opioids have overtaken heroin on the market. “In Estonia, three-quarters of those entering treatment now report fentanyl as their main drug. Fentanyl use is also reported in a number of other countries, particularly in eastern member states”, the EMCDDA says.
This drug, a synthetic opioid considerably more potent than heroin and particularly associated with overdoses, is likely to be manufactured illicitly, with the most important production sites thought to be located in countries bordering the EU.
In Finland, buprenorphine is the most frequently reported primary drug among those entering treatment. Currently in Europe, around 5 % of those entering treatment for drug problems, amounting to around 20,000 patients, report opioids other than heroin as their primary drug, the EMCDDA continues.
Since the start of the year, 39 new substances have been detected; in 2010, 41 new substances were reported to the EMCDDA or Europol. European policies must be adapted to address this phenomenon, the EMCDDA warned, acknowledging, however, the difficulty of the task, new psychoactive substances, for example, being sold as “legal highs”.
The EMCDDA reports some encouraging signs, too, in particular with regard to cocaine and cannabis use - “cocaine use may have peaked” and “cannabis use continues to decline among young people”, the report states. It says, too, that Denmark, Spain, Italy and the UK - four of the five countries with highest levels of use - “report some decline in last-year cocaine use among young adults (15-34 years)”. This could be as a result of the economic crisis and the high cost of the drug.
The reduction in cannabis use among young people could be linked to the reduction in tobacco consumption, the one often going with the other, the EMCDDA says. A further piece of good news is that latest five-year trend data show last year use of ecstasy and amphetamines among young adults (15-34 years) to be “overall stable or declining”.
The report states that heroin use continues to account for the largest share of drug-related diseases and deaths in the EU. The EU and Norway have more than 1.3 million regular opioid users. (SP/transl.rt)