Negative trends in outpatient care of addicted patients in Hungary.

OBJECTIVES This article investigates how the numbers of registered addict patients have changed in the last three decades in Hungary and whether the predicted HIV epidemic among intravenous drug users has occurred. METHODS Data were collected from the Annual Reports of the National Bureau of Statistics and National Epidemiological Centre as well as from the medical records of the author. RESULTS The total number of registered alcoholics decreased by about 75% during the investigated period. This decrease was more pronounced among males than females. After initial increase, the number of registered drug addicts showed stagnation with an about 50% drop-out rate. Fortunately, the anticipated HIV epidemic did not manifest. The negative effect of a poor political action upon the number of client visits could, however, be documented. CONCLUSION In conclusion, negative trends are seen in the Hungarian addiction care. Numerous variables may be taken into consideration as affecting factors, but it is not yet clear to what extent these negative factors are responsible for trends. These data, however, warrant further investigations.