scholarly journals "The first shot": the context of first injection of illicit drugs, ongoing injecting practices, and hepatitis C infection in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2006 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 861-870 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria de Lourdes Aguiar Oliveira ◽  
Mariana A. Hacker ◽  
Sabrina Alberti Nóbrega de Oliveira ◽  
Paulo Roberto Telles ◽  
Kycia Maria Rodrigues do Ó ◽  
...  

The context of first drug injection and its association with ongoing injecting practices and HCV (hepatitis C virus) infection were investigated. Injection drug users (IDUs) (N = 606) were recruited in "drug scenes" (public places, bars) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, interviewed, and tested for HCV. Sharing of needles/syringes was more prevalent at the first injection (51.3%) than at the baseline interview (36.8%). Those who shared syringes/needles at first injection were more likely to be currently engaged in direct/indirect sharing practices. Among young injectors (< 30 years), those reporting sharing of needles/ syringes at the first injection were about four times more likely to have been infected by HCV. Hepatitis C virus prevalence among active IDUs (n = 272) was 11%. Prison history and longer duration of drug injection were identified as independent predictors of HCV infection. To effectively curb HCV transmission among IDUs and minimize harms associated with risk behaviors, preventive strategies should target individuals initiating drug injection beginning with their very first injection and discourage the transition from non-injecting use to the self-injection of illicit drugs.

2004 ◽  
Vol 190 (8) ◽  
pp. 1396-1403 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda L. Herring ◽  
Kimberly Page‐Shafer ◽  
Leslie H. Tobler ◽  
Eric L. Delwart

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (01) ◽  
pp. 26-30
Author(s):  
Aetsam Bin Masood ◽  
Zain Ul Abideen ◽  
Muhammad Salman Anjums ◽  
Muhammad Irfan

Hepatitis C virus has infected over 200 million people worldwide and is the most common blood-borne disease. Pakistan has the HCV prevalence rate of over 8%. A literature search has been performed using different keywords in different databases i.e. PubMed, Google Scholar, and NCBI. 6.2% prevalence rate was found in the general population, 4.13% in healthcare workers and a higher prevalence rate was observed in injection drug users and multi transfusion population. Use of injection was very frequent among the Pakistani population, reuse and sharing of syringes have an association with HCV infections. In Pakistan most prevalent genotype of HIV was 3a. Knowledge about HCV and its risk factors also varies with the educational background. Blood donors should be screened for HCV, awareness campaigns about different risk factors should be initiated at the government level, and strict regulation on healthcare waste should be implemented, these might help in preventing its spread to healthy individuals.


2007 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Faye White ◽  
Richard S. Garfein ◽  
Kimberly C Brouwer ◽  
Remedios Lozada ◽  
Rebeca Ramos ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 1108-1111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik S. Anderson ◽  
Sarah K. Pfeil ◽  
Laura J. Deering ◽  
Tamara Todorovic ◽  
Suzanne Lippert ◽  
...  

2008 ◽  
Vol 82 (15) ◽  
pp. 7524-7532 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Li ◽  
Lisa V. Thomassen ◽  
Ayaz Majid ◽  
Brian J. McMahon ◽  
Dana Bruden ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The frequency that multiple different subtypes of hepatitis C virus (HCV) simultaneously infect a given individual is controversial. To address this question, heteroduplex mobility analysis (HMA) of portions of the HCV core and envelope 1 region was optimized for sensitive and specific detection of mixtures of HCV genomes of different genotype or subtype. Using the standard HCV genotyping approach of 5′-untranslated region (UTR) analysis, 28 of 374 (7.5%) chronic hepatitis C research subjects were classified as having either multiple-subtype HCV infections (n = 21) or switching HCV subtypes over time (n = 7), the latter pattern implying viral superinfection. Upon retesting of specimens by HMA, 25 of 28 multiple-subtype results could not be reproduced. All three patients with positive results were injection drug users with potential multiple HCV exposures. To address the hypothesis of tissue sequestration of multiple-subtype HCV infections, liver (n = 22), peripheral blood mononuclear cell (n = 13), perihepatic lymph node (n = 16), and serum (n = 19) specimens from 23 subjects with end-stage hepatitis C were collected and analyzed by the HMA technique. Whereas 5′-UTR results implicated mixed-subtype HCV infections in 2 subjects, HMA testing revealed no evidence of a second HCV subtype in any tissue compartment (0 of 70 compartments [0%]) or within any given subject (0 of 23 subjects [0%]). In summary, a large proportion of mixed-genotype and switching-genotype patterns generated by 5′-UTR analysis were not reproducible using the HMA approach, emphasizing the need for additional study.


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