Psychosocial Factors Involved in the Consumption of Psychotropic Substances in Adolescents Attending a Family Medicine Unit

Abstract

Objective: To identify psychosocial factors involved in the consumption of psychotropic substances in adolescents attending the Family Medicine Unit No. 31, of the Mexican Social Security Institute (imss), in Mexico City. Methods: Case-control study, 66 adolescents from 10 to 19 years of age participated. Non-randomized sampling by convenience was performed. Two age-paired groups were formed, 33 for the group of cases (consumers) and 33 for the control group (non-consumers). The short posit test (Problem oriented screening instrument for teenagers) was used to identify risk of consumption of psychotropic substances in adolescents, and the Hamilton scale to identify depression and its relationship with the consumption of psychotropic substances. Participation was voluntary, and their identity was protected by anonymity. The statistical analysis was carried out through the spss v. 20 program. The median and interquartile ranges were analyzed for the quantitative variables and odds ratio (or), and χ2 for the qualitative variables. Results: the medium age was 18 years for controls and 19 years for cases. Alcohol was the most consumed substance with 32 cases (97%), followed by marijuana with 6 cases (18.2%). Patients with depression were found to have a higher risk for marijuana use, rm of 2,857 (p=0.246, ic 0.464-17.583), and lower risk for alcohol consumption, rm of 0900 (p=0.124, ic 0.732-1.107). Conclusion: It was determined that depression is a factor influencing the consumption of psychotropic substances, its timely detection can prevent the emergence of physical and social damage that impact the health of adolescents.