Neurocognitive and social changes associated with unleaded petrol sniffing and abstinence from further sniffing

目前，人们对与嗅汽油有关的脑损伤的性质和永久性了解甚少。以前，我们使用文化上适当的脑功能评估来测试来自澳大利亚北部偏远社区的土著汽油嗅探器。研究表明，那些仍然生活在自己的社区里的休闲汽油嗅探者表现出一定程度的大脑功能障碍，影响了他们集中注意力、记忆、学习、控制情绪和控制行为的能力。然后，在这些社区完全停止了闻汽油。两年后，在那些因嗅汽油而出现脑功能障碍的人中，我们的评估显示，嗅汽油造成的一些脑损伤有所恢复。最初，目前的研究旨在通过回到这些社区，评估最初研究参与者的社会和大脑功能结果，来确定戒断汽油嗅探者的长期结果，现在他们已经停止嗅探汽油超过10年了。研究的第二部分将侧重于与含铅汽油、酒精、其他吸入剂和多种药物的使用相比，吸入无铅汽油对大脑、行为和社会功能的具体影响。本研究还将进一步探讨戒除汽油嗅吸后立即恢复脑功能和社会结果的时间过程。这将包括招募汽油嗅探员，让他们搬到郊外社区停止嗅探，并让他们在几个月或几年的恢复时间里进行几次大脑功能测试。这些发现将有助于制定适当的计划，以尽量减少闻汽油的危害。它还将制定一项与汽油有关的脑损伤分类评估议定书，供土著保健工作者、护士和医生等保健专业人员使用。

Currently, there is a poor understanding about the nature and permanence of brain damage associated with sniffing petrol. Previously, we used culturally-appropriate assessments of brain function to test Aboriginal petrol sniffers from remote communities in northern Australia. This showed that recreational petrol sniffers who remained living in their communities showed some degree of brain dysfunction that affected their ability to concentrate, remember things, learn, control their emotions and control their behaviour. Petrol sniffing was then completely stopped in these communities. Two years later, among people who had shown brain dysfunction from sniffing petrol, our assessments showed some recovery of some of the brain damage caused by sniffing petrol. Initially, the current study aims to determine the longer-term outcomes for abstinent petrol sniffers by returning to these communities and assessing social and brain function outcomes in the original study participants, now over 10 years since they stopped sniffing petrol. The second part of the study will focus on the specific effects on the brain, behaviour and social function of sniffing unleaded petrol in comparison to leaded petrol, alcohol, other inhalants and polydrug use. It will also further investigate the time course of recovery of brain function and social outcomes in the immediate period following abstinence from petrol sniffing. This will involve recruiting petrol sniffers who move to outstation communities to stop sniffing, and have them perform brain function tests several times over the months or years that they spend recovering. These findings will enable the development of appropriate programs to minimise the harm from petrol sniffing. It will also establish an assessment protocol for the classification of petrol related brain damage that can be used by health professionals such as Aboriginal health workers, nurses and doctors.