Who’s most likely to die from alcohol poisoning, and what do they drink? A new study led by researchers at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC), UNSW Sydney, has explored the circumstances of death and characteristics of fatal alcohol poisoning cases. The study, published in Drug and Alcohol Review, examined deaths from acute alcohol poisoning in Australia, 2011–2022.   Key findings: Alcohol is the seventh leading risk factor for mortality, disease, and disability. While lower prevalence drugs, may be well known to present a risk of overdose and death, this is not neces ..read more

Kendal Chidwick NDARC’s Kendal Chidwick discusses the findings from a recently published study that examined how patterns of opioid agonist treatment medicines have changed over the past decade.   In Australia, both methadone and buprenorphine have been subsidised by the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme (PBS) for the treatment of opioid dependence (termed ‘opioid agonist treatment’ or OAT) for several decades. In September 2019, a new formulation of long-acting injectable buprenorphine became available on the PBS. Administered weekly or monthly, long-acting injectable buprenorphine provides ..read more

Ms Daisy Gibbs, Evaluation Officer, Burnet Institute; A/Prof Caitlin Hughes, Associate Professor in Criminology and Drug Policy, Centre for Crime Policy and Research, Flinders University; Dr Rachel Sutherland, Senior Research Fellow, NDARC How long have drug detection dogs been used, why were they introduced, and how common are they? Drug detection dogs are a street-level policing strategy that has been used in Australia for over 25 years. The stated intent of this policy is to target drug supply. However, in 2006, the NSW Ombudsman showed most people detected by the dogs either had no drugs ..read more

Olivia Price The reviews are in! “★★★★★ – it was a pleasure to see the NDARC PhD candidates and early career researchers do us proud” – Shane Darke, Professor “★★★★★ – it was a fantastic experience to learn from a diverse range of speakers and leaders in the alcohol and other drug space; APSAD inspired me to continue working in this field on contemporary challenges that are rising” – Lily Palmer, Research Officer and First Time APSAD Attendee “★★★★★ – my favourite APSAD so far” – Michael Farrell, Director and 15th Time APSAD Attendee “★★★★★ – after attending APSAD 2023; I don't know why they ..read more

Professor Shane Darke NDARC's Professor Shane Darke discusses the findings of a new study published in Addiction journal, which found that 610 people died from heroin overdose between 2020-22. In recent years, much of the focus of the media has been on drugs such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and MDMA (‘ecstasy’). While these are clearly worthy of serious discussion, little recent attention has been given to heroin. Just because one drug comes to prominence does not mean that another ceases to be a problem. In order to examine the situation regarding fatal heroin overdose in Australia in ..read more

In October this year, NDARC awarded travel scholarships to early career researchers (ECRs) and higher degree research students (HDRs) in the alcohol and other drugs (AOD) sector. The scholarship recipients attended key events, including the 2023 NDARC Annual Research Symposium and the NDARC Early Career Networking Event. Nathan Harrison, a PhD candidate at Flinders University, and Cheneal Puljevic, an ARC DECRA Fellow at the Centre of Research Excellence on Achieving the Tobacco Endgame (University of Queensland), have shared their experiences. Here's what they had to say. What motivated you ..read more

Professor Shane Darke NDARC's Professor Shane Darke discusses his recently published study on deaths related to inhalant misuse in Australia.  There has been a great deal of recent concern regarding volatile solvent (or inhalant) misuse. The term covers the inhalation of substances that vaporise at room temperature for intoxication or sexual experience enhancement. While there is a wide range of such solvents, they may be broadly categorised as gas fuels (e.g. cigarette lighter canisters, gas bottles), petroleum (gasoline), aerosol propellants (e.g. air fresheners, deodor ..read more

Chrianna Bharat NDARC's Chrianna Bharat explains the implications behind a recently published study that looks at the reliability of self-reported drug use compared to biological test results.   Studies of illicit drug use often rely on people's self-reported use. Although the collection of self-report measures can provide a convenient, relatively inexpensive, and non-invasive method for obtaining information about illicit drug use, concerns about the reliability of such reports are often raised. Reasons proposed for their potential inaccuracy relate to stigma, negative consequences of ..read more

Lucy Tran It is estimated that between 10.2 and 23.7 million people worldwide inject illicit drugs. Among people who inject drugs (PWID), those who engage in injecting risk behaviours are at increased of blood-borne viruses, such as HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV), as well as bacterial infections. Injecting risk behaviours can include sharing injecting equipment such as needles/syringes, filters and spoons, and reusing one’s own equipment for multiple injections. There are a range of factors that are associated with why an individual might engage in injecting risk be ..read more

Wing See Yuen Alcohol-related harms are a broad range of negative consequences that can result from drinking alcohol. These can range from things that only affect your body, such as feeling sick or having a hangover, to things that affect you psychologically and socially, such as having problems with friends or getting into fights. Our study examined whether adolescents experienced different patterns of alcohol-related harm as they age, whether there are any factors in early adolescence that can predict these patterns, and whether some patterns were linked to higher risk of alcohol use disor ..read more