SEOUL — Drug abuse is on the rise at some Army installations in South Korea, military officials have confirmed.

While half of the Seoul-based soldiers busted so far in fiscal 2007 were in trouble for marijuana, those serving in outlying areas were more often abusing prescription medicines such as OxyContin that contain the opiate derivative oxycodone.

Officials at Yongsan Garrison, one of four headquarters for the Army community’s geographic divisions, say they see between five and eight soldiers busted for drug use in an average year. But with more than three months left in fiscal 2007, which ends Sept. 30, they’ve already seen 16 soldiers test positive for drug use. Of those, eight tested positive for marijuana. Only one tested positive for OxyContin.

Drug abuse officials speculate this is because marijuana is more easily obtained in Seoul’s entertainment district than in other areas where servicemembers are located.

Red Cloud officials reported that 10 soldiers in their area tested positive for drug use in fiscal 2007. Humphreys had six. Walker was the only garrison to have no soldiers testing positive so far this year.

Humphreys spokesman Robert McElroy said the garrison is seeing a higher than normal number of positive drug tests but was unable to provide numbers from previous years.

In the 32 positive drug tests in South Korea this fiscal year, 11 involved prescription drugs.

Yongsan prevention coordinator Richard Boyce said the number of soldiers abusing prescription drugs may stem from ignorance of the rules.

“What we’re hearing is that a soldier’s friend may have a prescription and they share the medication,” he stated in a military news release. “We need our soldiers and civilians to know not to use someone else’s medication.”

Others on the peninsula believe soldiers have no valid reason to claim such ignorance.

Jim Kaderabek, prevention coordinator for the U.S. military community in Daegu, said ensuring soldiers know not to take other peoples’ prescriptions is a priority throughout South Korea.

“It’s got command emphasis at the unit level,” he said.

And patients are made aware of rules against sharing medicine when they receive it, said Lt. Col. Tou Yang, chief of the 121st Combat Support Hospital’s pharmacy department.

“We have more than 100 medications classified as controlled by the Drug Enforcement Agency. I have a whole room full of them and most of them are opiate derivatives such as Tylox, morphine, codeine and Percoset,” Yang said. “Anytime the pharmacy dispenses one of these, the patient has to sign for it, acknowledging he’s received a controlled substance.”

Yang said labels on the packaging that warn patients that federal law prohibits sharing the medication reinforce the message.

Prescription drug abuse comes with consequences, officials said.

“In the eyes of the Army taking a friend’s prescription medication is the same as taking marijuana,” Yongsan alcohol and drug control officer Hector Samirrapa said in the release.

Soldiers who test positive for illegal drug use are automatically referred to the Army Substance Abuse Program. They also face the possibility of criminal investigation and prosecution and separation from the military.

OxyContin can be very good — or very bad

OxyContin is an opiate derivative with effects similar to those of morphine.

The active ingredient, oxycodone HCL, attaches itself to proteins called opioid receptors in the brain, spinal cord and gastrointestinal tract, blocking the transmission of pain messages to the brain.

Because of its addictive qualities, it falls under the Controlled Substances Act.

OxyContin is prescribed for moderate to severe pain, and when taken in pill form it has a controlled-release dosage, providing pain relief for about 12 hours, according to the FDA.

However, when abused by being crushed and injected intravenously or snorted through the nose, the controlled-release mechanism is nullified and the dosage is potentially deadly.

Source: Food and Drug Administration