The International journal on drug policy
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Over the past year or so, electronic cigarettes, more commonly known as 'e-cigarettes', have achieved widespread visibility and growing popularity. These products, which deliver nicotine via an inhaled mist, have caused no small amount of controversy in public health circles, and their rise has been accompanied by energetic debate about their potential harms and benefits. ⋯ In consequence, e-cigarettes jeopardize the carefully drawn distinctions between 'good' and 'bad' forms of nicotine.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Mar 2012
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyShort-term safety of buprenorphine/naloxone in HIV-seronegative opioid-dependent Chinese and Thai drug injectors enrolled in HIV Prevention Trials Network 058.
Buprenorphine/naloxone (BUP/NX) is not licenced for use in China or Thailand and there was little clinical experience with this drug combination in these countries at the inception of HIV Prevention Trial Network (HPTN) 058, a randomized trial comparing risk reduction counselling combined with either short-term or long-term medication assisted treatment with BUP/NX to prevent HIV infection and death amongst opioid-dependent injectors. ⋯ In Chinese and Thai opioid-dependent injectors, we found BUP/NX to be effective in reducing opioid withdrawal symptoms and safe during short-term use. ALT increases were observed over 4-week-follow-up, which are consistent with reports from Western populations. Long-term safety and efficacy evaluations are indicated.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Jan 2012
Historical ArticleRegime change: re-visiting the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.
March 2011 marked the 50th anniversary of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. This legal instrument, the bedrock of the current United Nations based global drug control regime, is often viewed as merely a consolidating treaty bringing together the multilateral drug control agreements that preceded it; an erroneous position that does little to provide historical context for contemporary discussions surrounding revision of the international treaty system. ⋯ Having established that a shift in normative focus has taken place in the past, the article concludes that it is timely for the international community to revisit the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs with a view to correcting past errors and inconsistencies within the regime, particularly those relating to Scheduling and traditional drug use.