Hepatitis remains a major health burden among people who inject drugs.Injecting drug use remains a major contributor to the global hepatitis C epidemic, with nearly half (48 per cent) of people who inject drugs – around 7 million – living with hepatitis C in 2024.The highest prevalence of hepatitis…
Polydrug use is common among people in drug treatment, with patterns varying by region.According to the limited data available on people in drug treatment, between 40 and 50 per cent of persons in drug-related treatment are polydrug users, with lower levels in Asia (22 per cent) and almost no…
Polydrug use poses significant risks and is more common among people with drug use disorders.No consensus definition of polydrug use currently exists but it can be generally understood as taking two or more drugs together or in sequence (intentionally or unintentionally), with both forms increasing…
The limited data available suggest that most overdose deaths involve multiple substances.Toxicological findings from 22 countries show that a median of 67 per cent of overdose deaths involve more than one substance.In 17 countries with available data, opioids and sedatives/tranquilizers are most…
Cannabis, ATS and opioids account for the highest numbers of people in drug-related treatment globally, with variation between regions and countries.In most reporting countries, cannabis or opioids are the most common primary drug among those in treatment. However, in the Caribbean, South America…
The use of cannabis and stimulant drugs continues to increaseGlobally, the use of cannabis and stimulant drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine and "ecstasy" increased in 2024, while the use of opioids remained largely stable.
Cocaine use remains concentrated in established markets, but emerging markets are gaining relevance.North America and Western and Central Europe have the largest number of users, while prevalence is highest in Oceania, followed by the Americas and Western and Central Europe.Alongside these…
The use of cannabis continues to grow in almost all regions of the world.The number of cannabis users has increased worldwide over the past 20 years, particularly in Africa, Asia and the Americas, while remaining relatively stable in Europe and Oceania.The annual prevalence of cannabis use has also…
Cannabis continues to be the most widely produced, trafficked and consumed drug worldwide in 2024. As in previous years, seizures of cannabis herb exceeded those of cannabis resin.
Progress on strengthening the prevention and treatment of substance abuse – as formulated in SDG target 3.5 – remains limited.Coverage of treatment interventions for substance use disorders remains low globally, with new estimates for this indicator suggesting that, at the minimum, 8.2 per cent of…
Seizures of amphetamine-type substances (ATS) in Europe are rising, with methamphetamine increasingly overtaking amphetamine.Seizures of ATS have increased strongly in Europe over the last decade, with growth reported for methamphetamine, amphetamine, “ecstasy” and non-specified and other ATS (…
Trend data on seizures suggest that the trafficking in (and misuse of) pharmaceutical opioids increased strongly over the last decade, reaching record levels in 2024.The largest volumes of pharmaceutical opioids were seized in Africa (60 per cent – mostly in West and Central Africa) and Asia (33…
