Amphetamine Substances in Mental Illnesses in Northern Ireland

Abstract

The use of amphetamine and its analogues as stimulants and for the control of appetite in the obese is well known. It is not so widely appreciated that they can produce both acute psychiatric disturbances and addiction. In spite of various publications drawing attention to amphetamine psychoses, the frequency of such states does not yet seem to be widely recognized, even among psychiatrists. Scant attention has been paid to the less alarming effects of these drugs, yet they cause a con siderable amount of ill-health. Addiction occurs and patients will go to great lengths to maintain their supplies.