scholarly journals Prevalence and correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffanie Ann Strathdee ◽  
Daniela Abramovitz ◽  
Alicia Harvey-Vera ◽  
Carlos Vera ◽  
Gudelia Rangel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
San Diego ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Protective Behavior ◽  
Protective Measures ◽  
The Past ◽  
Hispanic People

Background: People who inject drugs may be at elevated SARS-CoV-2 risk due to their living conditions and/or exposures when seeking or using drugs. No study to date has reported upon risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection among people who inject drugs or sex workers. Methods and Findings: Between October, 2020 and June, 2021, participants aged ≥18 years from San Diego, California, USA and Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico who injected drugs within the last month underwent interviews and testing for SARS-CoV-2 RNA and antibodies. Binomial regressions identified correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity. Of 386 participants, SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was 36.3% (95% CI: 31.5%-41.1%); 92.1% had detectable IgM antibodies. Only 37.5% had previously been tested. Seroprevalence did not differ by country of residence. None tested RNA-positive. Most (89.5%) reported engaging in ≥1 protective behavior [e.g., facemasks (73.5%), social distancing (46.5%), or increasing handwashing/sanitizers (22.8%)]. In a multivariate model controlling for sex, older age, and Hispanic/Latinx/Mexican ethnicity were independently associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity, as was engaging in sex work (AdjRR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.18-2.27) and having been incarcerated in the past six months (AdjRR: 1.49; 95% CI: 0.97-2.27). Presence of comorbidities and substance using behaviors were not associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity. Conclusions: This is the first study to show that sex work and incarceration were independently associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Despite engaging in protective measures, over one-third had evidence of infection, reinforcing the need for a coordinated binational response. Risk mitigation and vaccination is especially needed among older and Hispanic people who inject drugs and those with less agency to protect themselves, such as those who are sex workers or incarcerated.

scholarly journals Prevalence and correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. e0260286
Author(s):  
Steffanie A. Strathdee ◽  
Daniela Abramovitz ◽  
Alicia Harvey-Vera ◽  
Carlos F. Vera ◽  
Gudelia Rangel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
San Diego ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Elevated Risk ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Protective Behavior ◽  
Risk Environment ◽  
Community Based ◽  
The Past ◽  
Mexico Border

Background People who inject drugs may be at elevated SARS-CoV-2 risk due to their living conditions and/or exposures when seeking or using drugs. No study to date has reported upon risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection among people who inject drugs. Methods and findings Between October, 2020 and June, 2021, participants aged ≥18 years from San Diego, California, USA and Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico who injected drugs within the last month underwent interviews and testing for SARS-CoV-2 RNA and antibodies. Binomial regressions identified correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity. Results Of 386 participants, SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was 36.3% (95% CI: 31.5%-41.1%); 92.1% had detectable IgM antibodies. Only 37.5% had previously been tested. Seroprevalence did not differ by country of residence. None tested RNA-positive. Most (89.5%) reported engaging in ≥1 protective behavior [e.g., facemasks (73.5%), social distancing (46.5%), or increasing handwashing/sanitizers (22.8%)]. In a multivariate model controlling for sex, older age, and Hispanic/Latinx/Mexican ethnicity were independently associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity, as was engaging in sex work (AdjRR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.18–2.27) and having been incarcerated in the past six months (AdjRR: 1.49; 95% CI: 0.97–2.27). Comorbidities and substance using behaviors were not associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity. Conclusions In this community-based study of people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region, over one third were SARS-CoV-2 seropositive, exceeding estimates from the general population in either city. We found no evidence that substance use behaviors were associated with an elevated risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, but observed that circumstances in the risk environment, notably sex work and incarceration, were independently associated with higher SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence. Our findings suggest that a binational policy response to COVID-19 mitigation is warranted beyond the closure of the U.S.-Mexico border. Furthermore, decriminalizing sex work and drug use could reduce the burden of COVID-19 among people who inject drugs.

scholarly journals Migration and Mobility: Correlates of Recent HIV Testing Among Substance Using Female Sex Workers at the Mexico–Guatemala Border

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teresita Rocha-Jiménez ◽  
Sonia Morales-Miranda ◽  
Carmen Fernández-Casanueva ◽  
Jay G. Silverman ◽  
María Luisa Zúñiga ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hiv Testing ◽  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Female Sex Workers ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
The Past ◽  
Female Sex ◽  
Adjusted Logistic Regression ◽  
Time Location Sampling

AbstractThe goal of this paper is to determine the association between traveling to engage in sex work in another country and recent access to HIV testing among substance-using female sex workers (FSWs) in the Mexico–Guatemala border region. From 2012 to 2015, through modified time-location sampling and peer referral, 255 FSWs were recruited at Mexico’s southern border. Participants completed questionnaires on sociodemographics, migration and mobility experiences, work environment factors, and substance use. A conceptual framework, as depicted by a directed acyclic graph (DAG), guided our analysis. Crude and adjusted logistic regression models were used to evaluate the relationships between mobility experiences and HIV testing in the past year. Overall HIV testing was low (41%); after considering relevant covariates (i.e., interaction with health services and organizations, and sex work characteristics) traveling to engage in sex work in another country was found to be positively associated with HIV testing in the past year. Future efforts need to consider voluntary and non-stigmatizing prevention HIV services and focus on reaching out to less mobile women.

“Nothing Short of a Horror Show”: Triggering Abjection of Street Workers in Western Canadian Newspapers

Hypatia ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 142-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caitlin Janzen ◽  
Susan Strega ◽  
Leslie Brown ◽  
Jeannie Morgan ◽  
Jeannine Carrière
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Judith Butler ◽  
Newspaper Coverage ◽  
Discursive Practices ◽  
Analytic Framework ◽  
The Past ◽  
Foucauldian Analysis ◽  
Street Sex Work

Over the past decade, Canadian media coverage of street sex work has steadily increased. The majority of this interest pertains to graphic violence against street sex workers, most notably from Vancouver, British Columbia. In this article, the authors analyze newspaper coverage that appeared in western Canadian publications between 2006 and 2009. In theorizing the violence both depicted and perpetrated by newspapers, the authors propose an analytic framework capable of attending to the process of othering in all of its complexity. To this end, the authors supplement a Foucauldian analysis of abjection by considering the work of Judith Butler along with Julia Kristeva's conceptualization of abjection. Using excerpts from western Canadian newspapers, the authors illustrate how the media's discursive practices function as triggers for the process of cultural abjection by inscribing street sex workers with images of defilement. The authors argue that newspaper coverage of street sex workers reinforces the inviolability of normalized life by constantly reiterating the horror reserved for abjected bodies.

scholarly journals Correlates of COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy among People who Inject Drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana Border Region

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffanie Ann Strathdee ◽  
Daniela Abramovitz ◽  
Alicia Y. Harvey-Vera ◽  
Carlos Vera ◽  
Gudelia Rangel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
San Diego ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Smart Phone ◽  
Vaccine Dose ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Robust Standard Error ◽  
Mexico Border ◽  
Standard Error Estimation ◽  
To Receive

Background: People who inject drugs (PWID) are vulnerable to acquiring SARS-CoV-2 but their barriers to COVID-19 vaccination are under-studied. We examined correlates of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among PWID in the U.S.-Mexico border region, of whom only 7.6% had received ≥one COVID-19 vaccine dose by September, 2021. Methods: Between October, 2020 and September, 2021, participants aged ≥18 years from San Diego, California, USA and Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico who injected drugs within the last month completed surveys and SARS-CoV-2, HIV, and HCV serologic testing. Logistic regressions with robust standard error estimation via generalized estimating equations identified factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, defined as being unsure or unwilling to receive COVID-19 vaccines. Results: Of 393 participants, 127 (32.3%) were vaccine hesitant. Older participants, those with greater food insecurity, and those with greater concern about acquiring SARS-CoV-2 were more willing to be vaccinated. Higher numbers of chronic health conditions, having access to a smart phone or computer, and citing social media as one's most important source of COVID-19 information were independently associated with vaccine hesitancy. COVID-19-related disinformation was independently associated with vaccine hesitancy (adjusted odds ratio: 1.51 per additional conspiracy theory endorsed; 95% confidence interval: 1.31-1.74). Conclusions: Nearly one third of PWID in the San Diego-Tijuana border region reported COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, which was significantly influenced by exposure to disinformation. Interventions that improve accurate knowledge and trust in COVID-19 vaccines are needed to increase vaccination in this vulnerable population.

scholarly journals Factors Associated with COVID-19 Testing among People who Inject Drugs: Missed Opportunities for Reaching those Most at Risk

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Yeager ◽  
Daniela Abramovitz ◽  
Alicia Y. Harvey-Vera ◽  
Carlos F. Vera ◽  
Angel B. Algarin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
San Diego ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Vaccine Dose ◽  
Chronic Health Condition ◽  
Health Condition ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Treatment Programs ◽  
Missed Opportunities ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Mexico Border

People who inject drugs (PWID) are vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infection. We examined correlates of COVID-19 testing among PWID in the U.S.-Mexico border region and described encounters with services or venues representing potential opportunities (i.e., "touchpoints") where COVID-19 testing could have been offered. Between October, 2020 and September, 2021, participants aged ≥18 years from San Diego, California, USA and Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico who injected drugs within the last month completed surveys and SARS-CoV-2, HIV, and HCV serologic testing. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with COVID-19 testing prior to enrollment. Of 583 PWID, 30.5% previously had a COVID-19 test. Of 172 PWID who tested SARS-CoV-2 seropositive in our study (30.1%), 50.3% encountered at least one touchpoint within the prior six months where COVID-19 testing could have been offered. Factors independently associated with at least two fold higher odds of COVID-19 testing were living in San Diego (versus Tijuana), having recently been incarcerated or attending substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and having at least one chronic health condition. In addition, recent homelessness, having had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose and having been tested for HIV or HCV since the pandemic began were independently associated with COVID-19 testing. We identified several factors independently associated with COVID-19 testing and multiple touchpoints where COVID-19 testing could be scaled up for PWID, such as SUD treatment programs and syringe service programs. Integrated health services are needed to improve access to rapid, free COVID-19 testing in this vulnerable population.

scholarly journals The Loss of Boystown and Transition to Online Sex Work: Strategies and Barriers to Increase Safety Among Men Sex Workers and Clients of Men

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 1994-2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Argento ◽  
Matthew Taylor ◽  
Jody Jollimore ◽  
Chrissy Taylor ◽  
James Jennex ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Work ◽  
Sex Workers ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Sex Industry ◽  
Protective Measures ◽  
Community Based Research ◽  
Legal Reforms ◽  
Work Strategies ◽  
And Control

Men sex workers in Vancouver have largely transitioned from street to online solicitation coinciding with losing “Boystown,” the main outdoor sex work stroll for men. This article explores strategies and barriers to increase safety among men and trans sex workers and clients of men in Vancouver, Canada. Qualitative interviews were conducted (2012-2013) with 61 self-identifed men who currently buy and/or sell sex in a community-based research project known as CHAPS (Community Health Assessment of Men Who Purchase and Sell Sex). Drawing on a socioecological framework, thematic analysis of interview transcripts was conducted utilizing ATLAS.ti 7 software among men (39 workers; 8 buyers). Narratives indicate that gentrification and urban planning led to social isolation and loss of social support networks among men in the sex industry. Concurrently, the restructuring of sex work to online increased workers’ safety and control. Narratives reveal how the Internet can provide greater opportunities to negotiate terms of sex work and enhanced screening using webcams, reducing risks of violence, stigma, and police harassment for both workers and clients compared with the street. This study highlights how losing Boystown led to a loss of community and solidarity: key protective measures for sex workers. Online solicitation increased workers’ capacity to screen prospective clients and prevent violence. Recent legal reforms in Canada to further criminalize sex work raise significant concern for human rights and health of individuals in the sex industry, and point to the critical need to include voices of men and trans sex workers and buyers in policy discussions.

scholarly journals Correlates of sharing of needles and syringes among people who inject drugs in Dhaka city, Bangladesh

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 1497-1506
Author(s):  
Muhammad MM Hemel ◽  
Md. Masud Reza ◽  
Tanveer KI Shafiq ◽  
Md. Iqbal Kabir ◽  
AKM Masud Rana ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Workers ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Retrospective Chart Review ◽  
Syringe Sharing ◽  
Dhaka City ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Opioid Substitution Treatment ◽  
Needle Exchange Programs ◽  
The Past ◽  
Female Sex

Introduction: This paper examines the correlates of needle and syringe sharing among People Who Inject Drugs in Dhaka city, Bangladesh, which is currently experiencing a steep increase in HIV prevalence despite the ongoing presence of Needle Exchange Programs. Methodology: This was a retrospective chart review with cross-sectional design that extracted data from 783 male People Who Inject Drugs enrolled into five Opioid Substitution Treatment clinics in Dhaka city between April 2010 and January 2016. Data were retrieved from the program’s electronic database. Needle and syringe sharing constituted the borrowing or lending of needles and syringes from others within the past month preceding data collection. Results: Buprenorphine was the preferred injection drug and 44.6% shared needles and syringes within the past month. Multivariate analysis indicated that People Who Inject Drugs who were homeless (OR = 8.1, 95% CI = 1.4-44.9, p < 0.05), living with friends (OR = 6.8, 95% CI = 2.5-18.2, p < 0.001), injecting 2-3 times/day (OR = 4.8, 95% CI = 1.2-19.7, p < 0.05), injecting more than three times/day (OR = 4.8, 95% CI = 1.1-20.0, p < 0.05), not using condom with non-commercial female sex partners (OR = 3.3, 95% CI = 1.8-6.0, p < 0.05), bought sex from female sex workers (OR = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.0-8.3, p < 0.05), and did non-suicidal self-injury (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.0-3.0, p < 0.05) were more likely to share needles and syringes. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that operating a standalone harm reduction approach that just provides sterile needles and syringes may not adequately curb needle and syringe sharing among People Who Inject Drugs.

Suicidality and Treatment Experience Among Young People Who Inject Drugs

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Ellen Mackesy-Amiti ◽  
Lawrence J. Ouellet
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Young People ◽  
Mental Disorders ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
People Who Inject Drugs ◽  
Multivariable Analysis ◽  
Psychiatric Research ◽  
Health Treatment ◽  
The Past

Background. We examined correlates of past year suicidal thoughts and behavior (STB) and described past year treatment experiences among young people who inject drugs (PWID). Methods. Participants were 570 adults (18-25 years) who injected primarily heroin. Interviews were conducted at field stations operated by Community Outreach Intervention Projects in Chicago, Illinois (USA). Interviewers administered the Psychiatric Research Instrument for Substance and Mental Disorders. Substance use and mental disorders were based on DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Past year STB was based on multiple questions. Results. Sixteen percent of men and 25% of women reported STB in the past year. In multivariable analysis, STB was associated with non-heterosexual orientation, foster care, and being raised by two parents. Primary major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, other anxiety disorders, and borderline personality disorder had independent effects on suicidality. Among those reporting past year STB (n=111), 83% ever received mental health treatment, while 44% did so in the past year. While 24% of respondents indicated that at least one treatment matched their needs very well, 30% reported treatment that did not match their needs at all. The most common reason for ending treatment was program completion (about 50%) while getting better was endorsed by about 25%. Nearly half reported ending treatment due to a bad experience, logistical issues, or expense. Conclusions. Young PWID are at high risk for suicidal behavior and their mental health treatment experiences often do not meet their needs. There is a pressing need for more integrated substance use and mental health treatment.

Book Reviews

Transfers ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 131-149
Keyword(s):  
Sex Workers ◽  
Global City ◽  
Viet Nam ◽  
Community Culture ◽  
The Past ◽  
Transnational Mobility ◽  
Yellow Peril ◽  
David Walker ◽  
And Migration

Yogesh Sharma, ed., Coastal Histories: Society and Ecology in Pre-Modern India Debojyoti DasJason Lim, A Slow Ride into the Past: The Chinese Trishaw Industry in Singapore 1942–1983 Margaret MasonXiang Biao, Brenda S.A. Yeoh, and Mika Toyota, eds., Return: Nationalizing Transnational Mobility in Asia Gopalan BalachandranAjaya Kumar Sahoo and Johannes G. de Kruijf, eds., Indian Transnationalism Online: New Perspectives on Diaspora Anouck CarsignolKieu-Linh Caroline Valverde, Transnationalizing Viet Nam: Community, Culture, and Politics in the Diaspora Yuk Wah ChanChristine B.N. Chin, Cosmopolitan Sex Workers: Women and Migration in a Global City Lilly Yu and Kimberly Kay HoangDavid Walker and Agnieszka Sobocinska, eds., Australia's Asia: From Yellow Peril to Asian Century Daniel OakmanValeska Huber, Channelling Mobilities: Migration and Globalisation in the Suez Canal Region and Beyond, 1869–1914 Vincent LagendijkBieke Cattoor and Bruno De Meulder, Figures Infrastructures: An Atlas of Roads and Railways Maik HoemkeKlaus Benesch, ed., Culture and Mobility Rudi Volti

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