MARIJUANA AND OTHER DRUG-USE AMONG AUTOMOBILE AND MOTORCYCLE DRIVERS TREATED AT A TRAUMA CENTER

Serum from injured automobile and motorcycle drivers treated at a trau ma center was tested for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol activity to dete rmine precrash marijuana use. From June 1990 to March 1991, samples fr om approximately 20 automobile drivers per month and all motorcycle dr ivers were available for testing. Also, toxicology screens were perfor med for ethyl alcohol, cocaine, and phencyclidine (PCP) among the driv er groups. Six (2.7%) of the 225 automobile (AUT) drivers and 34 (32.0 %) of the 106 motorcycle (MTC) drivers were THC + (p < .001). Compared with a prior study, the THC + rate decreased significantly from 31.8% among AUT drivers (p < .001) but had not changed significantly from t he 38.6% rate among MTC drivers. Positive toxicology rates were higher among the 261 MTC drivers compared to the 1,077 AUT drivers tested fo r ETOH, CO, and PCP, being 47.1% vs 35.2% (p < .001), 5.0% vs 8.0% (p < .08), and 1.5% vs 3.1% (NS), respectively.