INCREASE IN HEROIN CONSUMPTION GREATER IN FINLAND THAN IN OTHER EU COUNTRIES

EU Drug Agency Issues Report

After a period of growing consumption, the increase in the use of heroin is
slowing down in most member states of the European Union. However,
according to the annual report of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs
and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), the use of heroin continues to rise in
Finland. The report also points out that the intravenous use of drugs is
reflected in an alarming increase in HIV infections in this country.

Published in Brussels on Tuesday, the EMCDDA report indicates that Finnish
trends in the use of illegal drugs would seem to be following those of the
rest of Europe with a delay of a few years.

When the use of heroin was sharply rising in France, Spain, Germany and The
Netherlands, it was almost unknown in Finland. Now that the use of heroin
seems to be even slowing down in the larger drug-consuming countries, the
problem seems to be growing in Finland.

In addition to the use of heroin and the HIV infections linked with it,
there is a similar gap between Finland and the rest of Europe in drug
rehabilitation. In most EU countries heroin addicts have been treated for
years with other drugs such as methadone and buprenorphine. In many
countries, this kind of replacement and maintenance treatment has helped
drug users stop injecting, decreasing the risk of HIV infection.

This trend is reflected in a stop in the growth of HIV infections in many
EU countries. The distribution of clean needles and the establishment of
supervised injecting rooms have also been seen as efficient ways to limit
the spread of HIV. Free drug maintenance therapy has also led to a decrease
in drug-related crime in many countries.

Finland still favours treatment without using drugs. However, buprenorphine
treatment was introduced in Finland last year.

Although heroin is associated with the greatest amount of problems, such as
crime, the spread of disease, and overdose deaths, it is used much less
than many other drugs. Less than one percent of all Europeans have ever
injected heroin.

Cannabis remains the most frequently used drug. Between 20% and 25% of all
people between the ages of 15 and 65 in Denmark, Spain, France, Ireland,
The Netherlands, and the UK have tried cannabis at least once. Finland has
Europe's lowest cannabis consumption rate: about ten percent of the
population have tried it. Amphetamine is the most commonly used illegal
drug in Finland.

Cannabis is a drug favoured by youth, while older people often go for
cocaine, which has become a party drug for successful adults. The use of
cocaine has increased in all parts of Europe, especially in a number of
large cities, such as Barcelona, Milan, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt.

In addition to HIV and AIDS, the EMCDDA is concerned about the spread of
other infectious diseases such as hepatitis, which are also related to the
intravenous use of drugs. Between 40% and 90% of EU citizens using drugs
intravenously have contracted hepatitis-C.

The agency predicts that the treatment of hepatitis will impose a
considerable burden on Europe's health care systems in the coming years,
and suggests the use of vaccinations to stop the spread.

Another drug-related hazard facing the EU comes from the east. The use of
illegal drugs is considerably more common in the EU applicant countries of
Eastern Europe than in the present member states.