Predictors of Relapse Following Institutional Rehabilitation among Male Drug Addicts in Selected Rehabilitation Centers in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Relapse is defined as ‘return to drug use after a period of abstinence often accompanied by reinstatement of dependence symptoms’. After a successful rehabilitation program, drug addicts face many challenges in integration with the society and many of them may end up with relapse. This study aimed to identify possible predictors of relapse after drug rehabilitation among male drug addicts managed in selected rehabilitation centres in Sri Lanka. A nested case-control study was conducted among 108 cases (drug addict who had a relapse within six months after discharge from rehabilitation centre) and 74 controls (drug addict who had no relapse within six months after discharge from rehabilitation centre). Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire and analysed using SPSS software. Mean (SD) age of the sample was 29.8(7.8) years. Six factors were associated with relapse after rehabilitation among drug users, of which only two remained predictive of relapse after controlling for confounding.