Facilitators to the continuous abuse of tramadol among the youth: A qualitative study in Northern Ghana.
Abdul-Ganiyu Fuseini, Alhassan Afizu, Yakubu H Yakubu and 1 others
PMID 31660166WHAT IT FOUND
Tramadol abusers in Ghana started using it due to peer pressure, curiosity, or hospital prescriptions for pain.
They continued using it for euphoria, energy, and sexual performance, despite experiencing vomiting, seizures, and irritability.
Key findings
01Participants identified peer pressure, curiosity, and post-traumatic addiction (following hospital treatment) as the main initiating factors for tramadol abuse.
02Continuous abuse was driven by desired psychological effects like euphoria and attentiveness, and physical effects like analgesia, energy, and improved sexual performance.
03Adverse effects included anorexia, profuse vomiting, irritability, and witnessing seizures in other users, which motivated some participants to want to quit.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study is qualitative and descriptive, so it cannot establish causality or prevalence of tramadol abuse. The sample was small (18 participants) and drawn from a single hospital psychiatric unit in Northern Ghana, limiting generalizability. Most participants were male (83.3%), so the findings may not fully represent the experiences of female users. Self-reported data on drug use and side effects may be subject to recall bias or social desirability bias.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that all tramadol abuse starts with recreational intent. A significant portion of participants became dependent after legitimate medical use for pain following accidents, highlighting the need for careful prescribing and monitoring by healthcare providers.