This article aims to describe the record type for first-time hospital admissions of 761 women at a single institution between 1997 and 2010 according to International Classification of Diseases, 10(th) revision, criteria, for mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use (F10-F19). This cross-sectional study included a convenience sample of 4,736 patients in the Brazilian public health system, among whom 761 were women. Overall, the rate of alcohol-related hospitalizations decreased from 93.6% in 1997 to 50.9% in 2010. In contrast, the rate of crack cocaine-related hospitalizations increased in women from 2.8% in 1997 to 67.8% in 2010. The linear regression was R(2) = 0.8472. These data indicate a new trend in the pattern of psychoactive substance use in women.
Keywords: Women; alcohol; cocaine; consumption; crack; drugs.