The document provides an overview of drug use, abuse, and addiction, defining key terms such as drug misuse, habituation, and dependence. It discusses the physiological and psychological consequences of drug use, including various classifications of drugs and their effects on the central nervous system. Additionally, it highlights the need for increased understanding of drug misuse within cultural contexts, and outlines the potential harms associated with different types of substances.

1. UNIT 3: Introduction to Drug of Abuse
Prof. Mayank David Raiborde
Asst. Professor
Dept. of Forensic Science
Kristu Jayanti College (Autonomous)
Bengaluru

2. • Drug: Any substance, other than that required for the maintenance
of normal health, which when administered to a living organism
modifies one or more of its functions.
• A drug is a substance that alters the normal functioning of the
human body, whether for medicinal, recreational, or other
purposes.
• Drug Use: Drug use refers to the consumption of a substance as
prescribed or intended, typically for legitimate medical or
recreational purposes, without adverse consequences or harmful
effects.
• When taken into body, changes the bodily functions either
physically or psychologically.
• Agent used for: Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention.
• Drug Misuse: Drug misuse occurs when a substance is used in a
way that deviates from medical or social norms, potentially resulting
in negative health or social consequences. Misuse can involve
taking more than prescribed, using someone else's medication, or
Topic 1: Introduction to Drugs & Psychotropic Substances

3. • Drug Habituation: Psychological and emotional dependency
resulting from repeated consumption of a drug (caffeine in tea
and coffee, nicotine in cigarettes).
• Drug Addiction: Physical, psychological and emotional
dependency resulting from repeated consumption of a drug
(opium, cocaine, cannabis).
• Compulsive use - There is compulsive use of drugs (craving)
resulting in physical, psychological and social harm. Use is
continued despite awareness of that harm.
• Drug Relapse - Relapse is the return to drug taking following
extended periods of abstinence.
• Drugs known to cause addiction - include illegal drugs as well
as prescription or over-the-counter [OTC] drugs [Prescription
drug abuse, Kiddie dope].

5. • Drug dependence: Drug dependence includes both drug habituation and drug addiction.
• The terms drug habituation and drug addiction were first defined in 1957 by World Health Organization (WHO)
Expert Committee on Addiction-Producing Drugs.
• In 1964, a new WHO committee suggested the term drug dependence.
• Types of Drug dependence: A proposal has been made to classify drug dependence into 7 types, but it has not been
widely accepted. The suggested types are:
1. Morphine Type
2. Barbiturate-Alcohol Type
3. Cocaine Type
4. Cannabis (Marihuana) Type
5. Amphetamine Type
6. Khat Type
7. Hallucinogen (LSD) Type

6. • Drug Abuse: The term “drug abuse” is not mentioned in DSM-IV-TR at all. However it loosely refers to the self
administration of any drug in a manner that deviates from the approved medical or social pattern within a given
culture.
• It is a tradition within some cultures to use psychoactive drugs [eg hallucinogenic mushrooms, Catha edulis,
Bhang on Holi and Kasoomba on cultural festivities in India]. Such use would not be called drug abuse.
• Drug abuse may not necessarily involve any dependency [physiological or psychological]. For example
occasional experimental use of LSD by a college student perhaps on his colleague’s insistence is drug abuse, but
not drug dependence.
• Physical dependency: Alteration in CNS which is manifested by tolerance and appearance of withdrawal
phenomena, when a chronically administered drug is discontinued or displaced from its receptor.
• Drug Tolerance: Need for greatly increased amounts of the substance to achieve intoxication (or the desired
effect) or a markedly diminished effect with continued use of the same amount of the substance.

7. • CNS DEPRESSANTS
• CNS STIMULANTS
• HALLUCINOGENS OR PSYCHEDELICS
• NARCOTICS
Common Classification of Drugs of Abuse

8. Depressants
• Depressants are substances used to slow down or depress the
functions of the central nervous system.
• Depressants calm irritability and anxiety and may induce
sleep.
• These include:
 Alcohol (ethanol or ethyl alcohol)
 Barbiturates
 Antipsychotics/antianxiety drugs (Ketamine)
 Various substances that can be sniffed, such as airplane glue,
model cement, or aerosol gas propellants such as freon.

9. • Alcohol (ethyl alcohol) enters the body’s bloodstream
and quickly travels to the brain, where it acts to suppress
the brain’s control of thought processes and muscle
coordination.
• Low dose: inhibits judgement, memory, concentration.
Confident personality.
• Moderate dose: reduced coordination, inhibits thought
process and speech patterns, slow reaction time. Impaired
walking/driving.
• High dose: irritable and emotional, anger/crying
• Extremely high dose: coma and death

10. • Barbiturates, or “downers,” are normally taken orally and
create a feeling of well-being, relax the body, and
produce sleep.
• Taken orally and enters the blood through the walls of
the intestine.
• Extensive and prolonged use will cause physical
dependence.

11. • Antipsychotic/Antianxiety drugs unlike
barbiturates, produce a relaxing tranquility without
impairment of high-thinking faculties or inducing
sleep.
 Common Antipsychotic drugs – reserpine and
chlorpromazine.
 Common Antianxiety drugs - Valium, Xanax.
• Can produce psychological and physical
dependency with repeated and high levels of
usage.

12. • Huffing or Sniffing has immediate effects such as exhilaration, but impairs
judgment and may cause liver, heart, and brain damage, or even death.

13. • Huffing or Sniffing - in the long term may
cause liver, heart, and brain damage, or even
death.
• Sniffing materials contains volatile solvents:
airplane glue, Freon, toluene, and gasoline.
• Immediate Effects: exhilaration and
euphoria, slurred speech, impaired
judgement, double vision, drowsiness,
stupor.