Alcohol, drugs found in hurt teens
Nearly 40% of teenagers treated for injuries at one hospital tested positive for something they should not have been using -- 29% of them for opiates such as opium or heroin, 11.2% for alcohol, and 20% for marijuana -- researchers have found.
The finding, published in the May issue of the Journal of Pediatric Surgery, suggested that it could be useful to screen young people treated for traumatic injuries for illegal substances, the researchers said.
“The two major preventable health issues facing adolescents are injuries that result in death or disability, and lifestyle choices that have long-term, adverse health consequences,” said Dr. Peter Ehrlich, who led the study.
The team, at the University of Michigan Health System, studied 443 patients age 14 to 17 who were admitted to the University of Michigan’s hospital for treatment of a severe injury between 1999 and 2003.
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