This release by Public Health Scotland (PHS) provides a follow-up to previously published estimates of the prevalence of Problem Drug Use (PDU) in Scotland between April 2015 and March 2016. The original definition was limited to opioids and benzodiazepines. Using data collected for the original study, broader definitions of PDU have been constructed for Scotland based on the addition of substances such as cocaine (including crack cocaine), amphetamines (including amphetamine-type substances) and cannabis (including synthetic cannabinoids).

This release presents patterns in the resulting estimates at Scotland level and explains limitations in the wider application of the estimation approach in a review of the underlying statistical methods and data sources.