BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns raised concerns about their impact on substance use among young people.

OBJECTIVES/AIMS: The aim of this study is to investigate the potential changes in alcohol and drug-related medical hospital admissions during the pandemic compared to pre and post pandemic years among individuals aged 15-24 in Ireland.

METHODS: Data from the Hospital Inpatient Enquiry (HIPE) database, covering emergency hospital admissions from 2017 to 2022, were analysed. Lockdown and control periods were identified, and admission rates for drug-related hospital admissions (DRHA) were calculated per population and per 100 all-cause admissions. The study also examined changes in alcohol-related hospital admissions (ARHA) and explored the contribution of different drug categories to DRHA during lockdowns.

RESULTS: We found that there was an increase in drug-related hospital admissions (DRHA) among individuals aged 15-24 years during the periods of hard lockdowns, comparing the three periods of hard lockdown from 2020 to 2021 with corresponding weeks in control years. The median rate of DRHA per million per week during the lockdowns was 23.8 (inter-quartile range [IQR] 19.0 - 29.9) while it was 18.2 (IQR 13.7-22.2) during the control weeks (p<0.001). DRHA accounted for a median 3.81% of admissions during lockdown weeks while they comprised 2.16% during the control weeks.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that an adverse effect of pandemic restrictions appears to be increased acute drug-related problems requiring medical management among youth aged 15-24 years.