ASSESSMENT OF THE SHORT-TERM MEMORY OF POLY-DRUG USERS IN COTE D'IVOIRE

Diboh Emmanuel*, Jean Claude N’guia, Assanvo Andey Junior Cédric, Kouadio Sébastien, DJE Bi Samedi and Irie Bi Antoine

ABSTRACT

For the past decade, Côte d'Ivoire has become the hub of illicit drugs in Africa, to the point that young users of these psychoactive substances no longer hide themselves. However, few studies have been done on that tricky problem of drug addiction in sub-Saharan Africa and on complications linked to its use. The aim of this study is to assess the effects of this behaviour (drug addiction) on the memory abilities of users, particularly on short-term memory. For this purpose, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale 3rd Edition (WAIS III) digit memory test was used to evaluate the immediate and working memory of patients admitted to rehabilitation centers in Côte d'Ivoire. The results showed that the repeated use of these drugs led to a very significant decrease in immediate memory and more in working memory.

Keywords: Narcotics – Addict – Youth - Immediate memory - Working memory.