@article{ref1,
title="Teens, drugs, & Vegas: Toxicological surveillance of illicit prescription and illegal drug abuse in adolescents (12-17 years) using post-mortem data in Clark County, Nevada from 2005 to 2015",
journal="Journal of forensic and legal medicine",
year="2018",
author="Paul, Anthea B. Mahesan and Simms, Lary and Mahesan, Andrew A. and Belanger, Eric Charles",
volume="58",
number="",
pages="20-24",
abstract="Illegal drug abuse, particularly prescription drug abuse is a growing problem in the United States. Research on adolescent drug abuse is based on national self-reported data. Using local coroner data, quantitative prevalence of illegal substance toxicology and trends can be assessed to aid directed outreach and community-based prevention initiatives. Retrospective analysis was conducted on all cases aged 12-17 years referred to the Office of the Medical Examiner, Clark County from 2005 to 2015 (n = 526). The prevalence of illegal opioid use in this population was 13.3%. The most commonly used drug was tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in 29.7%. Illegal-prescription opioids and benzodiazepines were used approximately 1.7 times as much as all other illegal-drugs, excluding THC combined. The largest proportion of illicit prescription drug users were accidental death victims (p = 0.02, OR = 2.02). Drug trends by youth are ever evolving and current specific data is necessary to target prevention initiatives in local communities.<br><br>Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1752-928X",
doi="10.1016/j.jflm.2018.04.002",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jflm.2018.04.002"
}