Feng et al. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy (2016) 11:34 DOI 10.1186/s13011-016-0078-x RESEARCH Open Access Comparison of illegal drug use pattern in Taiwan and Korea from 2006 to 2014 Ling-Yi Feng1, Wen-Jing Yu1, Wei-Ting Chang1, Eunyoung Han2, Heesun Chung3* and Jih-Heng Li1* Abstract Background: Illegal drug use has long been a global concern. Taiwan and Korea are geographically adjacent and both countries have experienced the illegal use problems of methamphetamine, a predominant prototype of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS). NPS, a term coined by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in recent years, have not been scrutinized for their safety and may become a new threat to public health and security worldwide. To conduct evidence-based drug policy, it is imperative to estimate the trend and pattern of illegal drug use. Therefore, this study aims to analyze and compare the current status of drug-related seizures, arrests and illegal drug use, with a focus on methamphetamine and NPS, between Taiwan and Korea. Methods: Data of illegal drug (including NPS)-related seizures and arrests were collected via anti-drug related agencies of both countries from 2006 through 2014.Since listing of NPS as controlled substances was a result of NPS abuse liability through official evaluation, the items of controlled NPS were used as an indicator of emerging use. These data obtained from Taiwan and Korea was then compared. Results: The results showed that while methamphetamine remained as a predominant drug in both Taiwan and Korea for decades, different illegal drug use patterns have been observed in these two countries. In Taiwan, the major illegal drugs were methamphetamine, heroin, and ketamine, whereas in Korea those were methamphetamine and cannabis. By comparison of per capita illicit drug seizures, the illegal drug use situation in Taiwan was at a higher stake than that in Korea. In terms of NPS use, ketamine has been a major drug in Taiwan, but it was seldom found in Korea. Besides ketamine, the major type of NPS was synthetic cathinones in Taiwan whereas it was synthetic cannabinoids and phenethylamines in Korea. The difference in the numbers of controlled NPS items between Taiwan (23) and Korea (93) may be due to the implementation of temporary control on NPS in Korea since 2011. Conclusion: While the problem of methamphetamine still lingers, NPS have emerged as a new issue in both countries. However, the NPS pattern was different between Taiwan and Korea. Although the controlled NPS items in Taiwan were far less than those in Korea, the quantity of total NPS seizures, especially with ketamine, was much larger in Taiwan than in Korea. Different NPS pattern may also imply they were from different sources. Factors other than geographical proximity, such as drug policy and availability and accessibility to drugs, should be taken into account for the current status of illegal drug use in Korea and Taiwan. Keywords: New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), Drug seizures, Ketamine, Methamphetamine, Taiwan, Korea * Correspondence: [email protected]; [email protected] 3Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology(GRAST), Chungnam National University, 99- Daehak-ro, Yuseongk-gu, Daejeon 305-764, Korea 1School of Pharmacy and Ph.D. Program in Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, 100 Shih-Chuan 1st Road, Kaohsiung City 80708, Taiwan Full list of author information is available at the end of the article © 2016 The Author(s). Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated. Feng et al. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy (2016) 11:34 Page 2 of 13 Background heroin still lingering, other major illicit drugs such as Humans have experienced a long history of drug (or ketamine and MDMA have emerged since the past decade substance) use. To tackle the profound drug-related [5, 14, 15]. In addition, illegal use of NPS other than keta- issue, the United Nations has promulgated three inter- mine, such as some synthetic cannabinoids [e.g., JWH- national anti-drug conventions in the twentieth century, 250(K2), JWH-018(K2)], synthetic cathinones [e.g., mephe- namely, the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, drone, MDPV (methylenedioxypyrovalerone)] and Salvia the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and (Salvia divinorum) has also been reported [13, 16, 17]. the 1988 Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Hence, illicit drugs consumed in Taiwan include not only Drugs and Psychotropic Substances [1–3]. These three the items in the 1961 Convention such as heroin, those in anti-drug Conventions provide legal mechanisms for the the 1971 Convention such as methamphetamine and control of narcotics, psychotropic substances and pre- MDMA, but also the NPS items such as ketamine, syn- cursors. According to the 2015 World Drug Report of thetic cannabinoids and cathinones. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), In Korea, the top three illicit drugs were methampheta- cannabis, opioids/opiates and amphetamine-type stimu- mine, cannabis and opiates in 2004 [18]. Synthetic drugs lants (ATS) are currently the top three illicit drugs such as MDMA, Yaba, and LSD were found in greater worldwide [4]. However, reviews on the major illicit drug proportion in the seizure records. The misuse of common use situation in some Asian countries, such as China, medicines, such as dextromethorphan, zipeprol, and cari- India, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam, showed soprodol, was also found among young people because of that although these three illicit drugs have been most their easy availability. In recent years, seizures of NPS, prevalent in general, ATS is not a favorable drug in such as the synthetic cannabinoids JWH-018 or the plant- India, organic solvent replaces opioids/opiates as one of based substance kratom, have been reported in Korea. the top three illicit drugs in Japan, and ketamine replaces Synthetic cannabinoids (JWH-018 and its analogues), first cannabis in both China and Taiwan [5–7]. These studies detected in 2008 [19], have been identified as an emerging indicate that the status of illegal drug use may vary from threat in Korea. Synthetic cannabinoids accounted for one country to another. Thus, evaluation of illegal drug 71 % of total confiscated new drugs, followed by 18 % of use situation at individual country level is necessary to phenethylamines, 7 % of piperazines and4% of tryptamines solve unique drug problems in each country. [20]. Traditional drugs, including heroin and cocaine, are In recent years, the UNODC has warned the emergence not commonly used in Korea as reflected by drug seizure of new psychoactive substances (NPS) [8, 9]. NPS are classi- and arrest data [19]. Therefore, the illegal drug use situ- fied by the UNODC as synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic ation may have changed over the last decade in Korea. cathinones, ketamine and PCP-type substances, phenethyla- However, comprehensive and updated information has mines, piperazines, tryptamines, aminoindanes, plant-based not yet been available. substances and others [10]. They are not only dangerous to Methamphetamine, a member of the phenethylamine individual health but also intimidating to public health and family, can be regarded as a prototype of NPS. Since both social security due to their uncertain toxicological profiles Taiwan and Korea have been the victims of methampheta- [11–13].TheNPSusehasbecomeanewglobalchallenge mine use problems for decades, the outcomes of their drug because they are predominantly derivatives or analogues of policy and countermeasures have not been thoroughly existing controlled substances and remain mostly elusive approached. Illegal ketamine use has recently become a from the UN Conventions. serious problem in Taiwan. However, the illegal drug use In Taiwan, heroin and methamphetamine have been the data has not been incorporated into the reports of the predominant illicit drugs since 1990s. HIV infection by United Nations because Taiwan is currently not a member needle/solution sharing among heroin injecting users of the UN. According to the latest annual report of Taiwan surged in the early 2000s but was contained within a Food and Drug Administration (TFDA), the amounts of decade after implementation of harm reduction measures ketamine seizure increased sharply in Taiwan in recent [11]. Methamphetamine, a schedule II substance listed in years [21] and the sources of ketamine mainly originated the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, was from China and India. Ketamine seized in Indonesia and originally a pharmaceutical that was legally manufactured Japan was perceived to originate from China and/or India but widely misused in Japan after World War II. Illegal between 2008 and 2012 [22]. Since Korea is geographic- use of methamphetamine then spread to Republic of ally adjacent to China, Taiwan and Japan, it would also Korea (a.k.a South Korea, hereby abbreviated as Korea) be of interest to explore if Korea is currently