PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE UP AMONG TEENS

Narcotics Agents In Cobb County Noted A Rise In The Nonmedical Use Of
Prescription

MARIETTA - Narcotics agents in Cobb County noted a rise in the nonmedical
use of prescription drugs in 2002, including among teenagers, according to
agents with the county's leading authority on drug abuse.

In 2002, abused prescription drugs rose from being the sixth most-seized
drug in Cobb County to the fourth, passing heroin, LSD and Ecstasy, said
Maj. John Koehler with the Marietta-Cobb-Smyrna Narcotics Unit, which
combats drug use in Cobb.

The only drugs MCS agents seized more of in Cobb were marijuana, cocaine
and methamphetamines, Koehler said.

In Cobb middle and high schools, officials recorded a total of 248 drug
incidents during the 2001-2002 school year that involved the discipline of
students in county schools, according to statistics released by the school
system.

Marietta City Schools - including middle and high schools - recorded a
total of 21 drug incidents, according to Marietta City School system
statistics.

But Koehler said what agents seize is not always an exact measure of what
people in Cobb County are abusing the most.

"No one truly knows what the biggest problem is out there," Koehler said.
"I generate that list based on our seizures, and it changes from year to year."

In 1999, an estimated 4 million people in the United States were using
prescription drugs non-medically, according to a survey by the National
Institute on Drug Abuse.

NIDA research shows there are three classes of prescription drugs that are
most abused: opioids, usually prescribed to treat pain; depressants, which
are used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders; and stimulants, which are
prescribed to treat narcolepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
and obesity.

Commonly abused opioids include drugs such as OxyContin, Vicodin and
Demerol. Examples of depressants include Valium and Xanax, and stimulants
include Dexedrine and Ritalin.

Koehler said the popularity of prescription drugs most likely stems from
people feeling that it must be OK to take them because they come from a doctor.

"They're not afraid of it," he said. "It's not made in a home lab. They
think because a doctor prescribes it, it's safe."

The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse conducted in 1999 revealed that
the sharpest increases in new users of prescription drugs for non-medical
purposes occurred in 12- to 17- and 18- to 25-year-olds.

And while prescription drug abuse is rising sharply among young adults on a
national level, Koehler said it is a problem for all age groups in Cobb.

He said in the particular instance of OxyContin - known medically as
oxycodone - agents have found people of all ages who abuse it.

OxyContin is sold on the street in doses of 10, 20, 40, 80 and 160
milligrams. An Oxy 80 has a street value of about $35 a pill, and the high
lasts about four hours, he said.

"This is abused by teenagers but you can't say it's just by teenagers,"
Koehler said. "It's across the board."

And despite its price, the drug is not confined to one particular
socio-economic bracket. It's not strictly a "rich person's drug," he said.

"There is no barrier," he said. "It doesn't matter whether you're poor or
wealthy. You still have means to get it."