Trends in Methamphetamine Admissions to Treatment: 1997-2007

Trends in Methamphetamine Admissions to Treatment: 1997-2007

In Brief Admissions for primary methamphetamine abuse were more than twice as likely in 2007 to be aged 40 or older (23 percent) compared with admissions in 1997 (10 percent)

The percentage of primary methamphetamine admissions that were Hispanic more than doubled from 1997 (9 percent) to 2007 (21 percent)

The percentage of primary methamphetamine admissions who smoked the drug increased each year from 1997 to 2007 and increased overall from 27 percent in 1997 to 67 percent in 2007

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive stimulant that can cause a variety of health problems, including cardiovascular disease, psychotic symptoms, memory loss, violent behavior, and mood disturbances. Recent data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) indicate that the prevalence of past year methamphetamine use decreased from 2006 to 2007 for all age groups. Nevertheless, in 2007, 1.3 million persons aged 12 or older had used methamphetamine in the past year.1, 2 Understanding the characteristics of admissions to substance abuse treatment for primary methamphetamine abuse and how these characteristics have changed over time may help treatment providers identify and tailor treatment programs for this population, leading to improved treatment outcomes.

Using data from the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS), this report examines trends in substance abuse treatment admissions for abuse of methamphetamine3 from 1997 to 2007. TEDS collects data on the primary substance of abuse at the time of admission to substance abuse treatment and up to two additional substances of abuse at admission.

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Trends in Methamphetamine Admissions to Treatment: 1997-2007