Africa Knowledge Management Portal
Informing health decisions and actions
Public health dimension of the world drug problem
Prevention
Pharmaceuticals and Drugs
Description
Drug use, drug use disorders and related health conditions are major public health concerns. According to WHO��s latest estimates for 2015, psychoactive drug use is responsible for more than 450 000 deaths per year. The drug-attributable disease burden accounts for about 1.5% of the global burden of disease, and injecting drug use accounts for an estimated 30% of new HIV infections outside sub-Saharan Africa and contributes significantly to the epidemics of hepatitis B and hepatitis C in all regions.