Comparison of Substance Abuse and its Causes among Students of Tehran University of Medical Sciences and University of Tehran

Nowadays drug abuse and addiction is one of the most important health concerns as well as social and political problems in the world. This study was done to compare substance abuse and its related factors between University of Tehran and Tehran University of Medical Sciences. This study was cross-sectional. In this study، 489 students of Tehran University and 488 students of Tehran University of Medical Science were selected through stratified cluster sampling. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. Collected data was analyzed by SPSS software version 18 using chi-square test، regression، and Student’s t-test. P < 0. 05 was considered significant. The prevalence of drug abuse in students was 33% in Tehran University of Medical Science، and was 37. 5% in University of Tehran. First substance use was during student period. In both university، there were statistically significant relationship between drug abuse and gender، religious beliefs، family history of substance use، and school (P > 0. 001). The most mentioned way of exposure to substances was friends. Regarding the role of universities as the centers of training and educating، it is proposed to conduct health education programs for prevention of substance abuse in high schools. These preventive programs should be continued at universities.