PREVALENCE PATTERN AND KNOWLEDGE OF CONSEQUENCES OF SUBSTANCE USE AMONG UNDERGRADUATES IN SELECTED UNIVERSITIES IN LAGOS STATE

Substance use among university undergraduates has become a growing public health concern, particularly in developing countries. Studies have shown that substance use in Lagos State has reached epidemic proportion with high prevalence among undergraduates. Despite numerous awareness campaigns, substance use remains prevalent among students in higher institutions. There is paucity of data on the comparative prevalence, pattern and knowledge of consequences of substance use among undergraduates. Hence, this study compared the prevalence, patterns and knowledge of consequences of substance use among undergraduates in selected universities in Lagos State, Nigeria. This study adopted cross-sectional research design. The population was 88,241 undergraduates from three universities (one Federal Owned University (FOU), one State Owned University (SOU) and One Privately Owned (PO)) in Lagos State, Nigeria. A sample size of 841 was determined using Cochran formula. A proportionate sampling technique was used to select respondents (FOU = 382, SOU = 294, and PO = 243). A structured and validated questionnaire with Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient ranging from 0.78 to 0.91 was used to collect data. The response rate was 80.8.%. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential (t-test, multiple linear regression) statistics at 0.03% level of significance. Findings showed high prevalence rate of substance use among university students in FOU (60.10%), SOU (61.30%) and PO University (57.40%). The pattern showed that undergraduates of FOU and SOU had higher consumption of the following substances: Energy drink (63.30%, 60.80%), alcohol (50.70%, 53.70%), cigarette (47.01%, 50.01%), and marijuana (40.50%, 43.30), respectively. The undergraduates in FOU had highest knowledge mean score on the consequences of substance use (10.20 ± 4.21), followed by undergraduates of PO university (9.30 ± 4.80) and SOU (6.90 ± 4.80). Furthermore, there was a significant difference in prevalence of substance use across the universities (F = 2.19, p < 0.03). Also, there was a significant difference in knowledge mean score on the consequences of substance use and substance use across the universities (F = 3.29, p < 0.03). A significant association was found between the level of knowledge of consequences of substance use and substance use in SOU (β = 0.14, t(294) = 10.58, p ˂ 0.03), FOU (β = 0.33, t(298) 6.66 p ˂ 0.03) and PO university (β = 0.01, t(243) = 3.46 p ˂ 0.03) among undergraduates in selected universities in Lagos State.