Substance abuse among Saudi population

Fatimah Mohammed Al-Jerani; Ethar Ahmed Al-Basry; Heba Aldawood; Zakia Ahmed Almudhry; Norah Muteb Alshammari; Hawraa Busaleh; Mohammed Madadin

doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

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Review Article
Online Published: 16 Dec 2019

IJMDC. 2019; 3(12): 1174-1179

doi: 10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Substance abuse among Saudi population

Fatimah Mohammed Al-jerani, Ethar Ahmed Al-basry, Heba Aldawood, Zakia Ahmed Almudhry, Norah Muteb Alshammari, Hawraa Busaleh, Mohammed Madadin.

Abstract
Substance abuse is a significant problem worldwide affecting the health of the individuals and has a negative impact on their relationship with society creating an economic burden on the government. There are limited studies regarding substance abuse in Saudi Arabia and its side effects as most of the cases remain un-reported. In this review, we reviewed 38 studies done among the Saudi population targeting seven substances including tobacco, alcohol, Khat, cannabis, amphetamine, cocaine and opioids to estimate the approximate prevalence of these substance abuse in Saudi Arabia. The most common substance abused was tobacco followed by amphetamines, while Khat consumption was found most common in the southern region of Saudi Arabia. Alcohol consumption was one of the substances whose prevalence was found much underrated in Saudi Arabia. Hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, depression and anxiety were the most common comorbidities associated with alcohol consumption. Cannabis usage was found more common in adolescents than adults and it has physical and psychological symptoms. The presence of psychotic symptoms among drug users varied depending on the severity of its abuse. Substance abuse was more common in young males due to peer pressure, which was found as the main causative factor.

Key words: Substance abuse, tobacco, khat, amphetamine, Saudi Arabia

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Pubmed Style

Al-jerani FM, Al-basry EA, Aldawood H, Almudhry ZA, Alshammari NM, Busaleh H, Madadin M. Substance abuse among Saudi population. IJMDC. 2019; 3(12): 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Web Style

Al-jerani FM, Al-basry EA, Aldawood H, Almudhry ZA, Alshammari NM, Busaleh H, Madadin M. Substance abuse among Saudi population. https://www.ijmdc.com/?mno=73862 [Access: June 23, 2026]. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

Al-jerani FM, Al-basry EA, Aldawood H, Almudhry ZA, Alshammari NM, Busaleh H, Madadin M. Substance abuse among Saudi population. IJMDC. 2019; 3(12): 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Vancouver/ICMJE Style

Al-jerani FM, Al-basry EA, Aldawood H, Almudhry ZA, Alshammari NM, Busaleh H, Madadin M. Substance abuse among Saudi population. IJMDC. (2019), [cited June 23, 2026]; 3(12): 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Harvard Style

Al-jerani, F. M., Al-basry, . E. A., Aldawood, . H., Almudhry, . Z. A., Alshammari, . N. M., Busaleh, . H. & Madadin, . M. (2019) Substance abuse among Saudi population. IJMDC, 3 (12), 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Turabian Style

Al-jerani, Fatimah Mohammed, Ethar Ahmed Al-basry, Heba Aldawood, Zakia Ahmed Almudhry, Norah Muteb Alshammari, Hawraa Busaleh, and Mohammed Madadin. 2019. Substance abuse among Saudi population. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 3 (12), 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

Chicago Style

Al-jerani, Fatimah Mohammed, Ethar Ahmed Al-basry, Heba Aldawood, Zakia Ahmed Almudhry, Norah Muteb Alshammari, Hawraa Busaleh, and Mohammed Madadin. "Substance abuse among Saudi population." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 3 (2019), 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style

Al-jerani, Fatimah Mohammed, Ethar Ahmed Al-basry, Heba Aldawood, Zakia Ahmed Almudhry, Norah Muteb Alshammari, Hawraa Busaleh, and Mohammed Madadin. "Substance abuse among Saudi population." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 3.12 (2019), 1174-1179. Print. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Al-jerani, F. M., Al-basry, . E. A., Aldawood, . H., Almudhry, . Z. A., Alshammari, . N. M., Busaleh, . H. & Madadin, . M. (2019) Substance abuse among Saudi population. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 3 (12), 1174-1179. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1573839276

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