anabolic frolic

Alcohol/Violence Bigger Danger Than Drugs in Clubs



Mon Nov 4, 7:08 PM ET
By Patricia Reaney

LONDON (Reuters) - Alcohol and violence pose more of an immediate health hazard than drugs for young adults who enjoy clubbing, researchers said on Tuesday.

Drugs such as Ecstasy, speed, cocaine and heroin are a serious problem in clubs but assaults fueled by alcohol are the main reason clubbers seek hospital treatment.

"There is a perception that clubbing is all about drugs and wild debauchery, certainly the latter. It is still primarily about drink," said Dr Chris Luke of Cork University Hospital in southern Ireland.

Despite the glamour, high tech atmosphere and designer drugs, the emergency room specialist said clubbing is really an old-fashion activity with lots of alcohol and everything that goes with it. "The problems that require hospital attention are the ones that result from alcohol-fueled violence and pure alcohol intoxication compounded by drugs," he told Reuters.

"For every drug problem (treated in hospital) there are five or 10 alcohol problems," he added.

BOOZE, BOTTLES AND BOUNCERS

Luke, who has worked in emergency rooms in England, Scotland, Ireland and Australia, said the problem is the same throughout the western world.

"Clubbing is the key arena or platform for youth culture. It brings together all the issues, sexual health, drugs, drinks and public order."

In Britain alone nearly 16 million people go clubbing at least once a year. Luke and his team studied the type of injuries clubbers were treated for in a large hospital in Liverpool, northern England.

Nearly 800 were treated during the 12-month study and alcohol was the most common contributing factor. Almost 60 percent of the injuries were due to assaults, 10 percent of which were caused by club security staff.

One in five clubbers had been attacked with glass bottles or containers. Accidents included falls from stages, windows and stairs.

"We see everything -- broken backs, very badly bottled faces, very bad cuts to fingers and feet," said Luke who reported his finding in the Emergency Medicine Journal.

"It is increasingly common to see young girls, both victim and perpetrators, of violence involving glass and faces," he added.

Drugs problems in clubs tend to be self-limiting apart from the occasional tragedy such as an Ecstasy death. Clubbers are also more likely to have taken two or more drugs as well as alcohol, according to Luke.

"Ecstasy was a drug of the 90s and it is still a considerable problem but cocaine is the tidal wave we are seeing. Cocaine is associated with sudden death from heart attack and stroke but also with extraordinary violence," he said.

The researchers urged club owners to use unbreakable glass or plastic containers and to eliminate glass outside club venues to reduce injuries requiring hospital treatment.

They also advised club owners to limit overcrowding, curb promotions for cheap drinks and to provide medical facilities on site at large venues.