[Emergency consultations for abuse of psychoactive substances in Buenos Aires hospitals].

Emergency consultations connected with psychoactive substance abuse may reflect the particular nature and the magnitude of this problem in a community. A survey of three Buenos Aires hospitals revealed that 5% of all the cases attended during a single week were related to the consumption of alcohol, cocaine, marijuana, or psychoactive drugs, either separately or in combination. Lack of formal education, unemployment, and marital separation were important factors in substance abuse by males (especially in the case of alcohol abuse among older men and the abuse of psychoactive and illegal drugs among the young), while women tended to take overdoses of psychoactive drugs in times of personal crisis. Cultural tolerance of alcoholism and the availability of psychoactive drugs emerged as problems requiring specific study. The research method generated reliable data and could be used to obtain epidemiological information to support the necessary control measures.