Rasmussen Nicolas
History & Philosophy of Science, Room 314 Morven Brown, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052 Australia.
Am J Public Health. 2008 Jun;98(6):974-85. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2007.110593. Epub 2008 Apr 29.
Using historical research that draws on new primary sources, I review the causes and course of the first, mainly iatrogenic amphetamine epidemic in the United States from the 1940s through the 1960s. Retrospective epidemiology indicates that the absolute prevalence of both nonmedical stimulant use and stimulant dependence or abuse have reached nearly the same levels today as at the epidemic's peak around 1969. Further parallels between epidemics past and present, including evidence that consumption of prescribed amphetamines has also reached the same absolute levels today as at the original epidemic's peak, suggest that stricter limits on pharmaceutical stimulants must be considered in any efforts to reduce amphetamine abuse today.
利用基于新一手资料的历史研究，我回顾了美国20世纪40年代至60年代首次主要由医源性导致的安非他明流行的起因和过程。回顾性流行病学表明，如今非医疗用途兴奋剂使用以及兴奋剂依赖或滥用的绝对流行率已接近1969年左右该流行高峰期的水平。过去与现在的流行情况之间存在更多相似之处，包括有证据表明，如今处方安非他明的消费量也达到了最初流行高峰期的绝对水平，这表明在当今任何减少安非他明滥用的努力中，都必须考虑对药用兴奋剂实施更严格的限制。
