Australian Burden of Disease Study 2018: Interactive data on risk factor burden among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

In 2018, 6.9% of the total disease burden among Indigenous Australians was due to illicit drug use. Illicit drug use includes burden from opioids, amphetamines, cocaine and cannabis and other illicit drug use, as well as unsafe injecting practices. Illicit drug use was the 4th leading risk factor contributing to total disease burden.

These estimates reflect the amount of disease burden that could have been avoided if all Indigenous Australians had not used illicit drugs.

Illicit drug use contributed to burden for 15 diseases and injuries; 4 types of injuries, 3 infections, liver cancer, chronic liver disease and 4 types of mental and substance use disorders (see ABDS 2018 Risk factor estimates for Indigenous Australians data table S1). The linked diseases differed by type of illicit drug.

Individual drug use types

Of the individual drug use types, opioid use was the leading illicit drug use risk, contributing to 2.2% of the total burden among Indigenous Australians in 2018. This was followed by amphetamine use (1.9% of total burden in 2018) and cannabis use (1.6%).

How much burden was attributable to illicit drug use?

In 2018 among Indigenous Australians, illicit drug use was responsible for almost all burden due to drug use disorders (excluding alcohol) (99%), 86% of poisoning, 34% of suicide and self-inflicted injuries, and 27% of chronic liver disease and liver cancer.

How did burden attributable to illicit drug use vary by age and sex?

The burden due to illicit drug use was estimated in Indigenous Australians aged 15 and over. Disease burden due to illicit drug use was highest among Indigenous Australians aged between 25–34, after which, burden gradually decreased with increasing age.

Indigenous males experienced more than twice the total burden from illicit drug use than Indigenous females. Drug use disorders (excluding alcohol) were the largest contributor to the illicit drug use attributable burden in Indigenous Australians aged between 15 and 64. Poisoning and suicide & self-inflicted injuries were also large contributors to the attributable burden in both Indigenous males and Indigenous females of the same age groups.

How has disease burden due to illicit drug use changed over time?

The age-standardised rate of total burden attributable to illicit drug use among Indigenous Australians increased by 76.5% between 2003 and 2018 (from 12.9 to 22.8 DALY per 1,000 population).