Substances detected in used syringes of injecting drug users across 7 cities in Europe in 2017 and 2018: The European Syringe Collection and Analysis Project Enterprise (ESCAPE).

Background And Aims: Injecting drug use is a matter of public health concern, associated with risks of overdoses, addiction and increased risk of bloodborne viral transmissions. Self-reported data on substances injected can be inaccurate or subject to bias or drug users might be oblivious to their injected substances or adulterations. Gathering of robust analytical information on the actual composition of substances injected might provide better information about the drugs that are being used.

Diverted medications and new psychoactive substances-A chemical network analysis of discarded injecting paraphernalia in Hungary.

Background: Until about 2010, people who inject drugs (PWIDs) injected almost exclusively heroin and amphetamines in Hungary. After 2010, self-reported studies have indicated a dominance of new psychoactive substances on the drug market for injectable drugs.

Methods: Between March 2015 and February 2016, we collected used and discarded injecting paraphernalia.

Drug residues in syringes and other injecting paraphernalia in Hungary.

The appearance and spread of new psychoactive substances (NPS) is a phenomenon seen throughout Europe since 2008. Synthetic cathinones, a group of NPS, have been self-reported as the drug injected by the vast majority of people who inject drugs (PWID) in Hungary. This study aims at updating our knowledge of what exactly are the compounds injected by PWID.

[Changes in psychosocial symptoms of opiate users over six months with buprenorphine/naloxone substitution therapy].

Aims: The main target of our research was to measure the changes in psychological symptoms (anxiety, depression, craving) of patients receiving buprenorphine-naloxone substitution treatment for six months, and the evaluation of the changes using the clients' dependency parameters (ASI).

Methods: The level of dependency was investigated using the Addicton Severity Index (ASI). The psychiatric symptoms related to Axis I and II disorders were examined using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, SCID I and SCID II.

Association between Novelty Seeking of opiate-dependent patients and the catechol-O-methyltransferase Val(158)Met polymorphism.

Background: Candidate genes of the dopaminergic system have been reported as key elements in shaping human temperament. Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) plays a vital role in dopamine inactivation, and the Val(158)Met single nucleotide polymorphism (rs4680) in its gene has been recently associated with the Novelty Seeking (NS) temperament scale of the Temperament and Character Inventory in studies of healthy adults, as well as methamphetamine abusers.

Method: Our goal was to examine the association between temperament dimensions of the Temperament and Character Inventory and the COMT Val(158)Met variation in a Hungarian sample of 117 heroin-dependent patients and 124 nondependent controls.

Early experience with Suboxone maintenance therapy in Hungary.

Background: Suboxone (Buprenorphine/naloxone) is a novel drug used in opiate substitution therapy. In Hungary, it was introduced in November 2007. Suboxone is a product for sublingual administration containing the partial mu-receptor agonist buprenorphine and antagonist naloxone in a 4:1 ratio.

[The potential role of childhood ADHD in the development of heroin dependence at a young age].

Several studies suggested a possible link between substance use disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity syndrome (ADHD). The ADHD Rating Scale (ADHD-RS) completed by parents is a tool for diagnosing ADHD in childhood. We adapted this questionnaire for a self-report retrospective scale to estimate the presence of childhood ADHD symptoms in adults.