injecting drug use
Recently Published Documents


TOTAL DOCUMENTS

383
(FIVE YEARS 59)

H-INDEX

36
(FIVE YEARS 4)

2022 ◽  
Vol 101 ◽  
pp. 103571
Author(s):  
Sophia E. Schroeder ◽  
Kerryn Drysdale ◽  
Lise Lafferty ◽  
Eileen Baldry ◽  
Alison D. Marshall ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (Supplement_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Jakubauskiene ◽  
J Lindert

Abstract Background Addiction to illicit drugs is considered as medical condition requiring effective measures to prevent the disease and minimize harms of this addiction. Injecting drug use increases the risk for acquiring blood-borne infections among people who inject drugs (PWID). The aim of the study was to assess the risk behavior related to the use of intravenous narcotic and psychotropic substances among PWID in Lithuania. Methods A cross sectional survey using respondent driven sampling (RDS) of active intravenous drug users (n = 369) in Lithuania has been conducted in 2018-2019. RDS is a peer-referral sampling methodology applied to estimate characteristics of underserved populations that cannot be sampled randomly. 8 seeds were selected in 5 different sites across the country to recruit the study subjects. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were conducted. Results Data collection was completed using 4 waves. Each seed yielded 3 to 24 eligible recruits. 80% of the sample were males, 20% - females. Age mean is 36.8 years, SD-7.69. The age of debut injecting drugs was 13 years, average age 20 years, SD 4.8. Average injecting duration was 12 years. 76% were incarcerated during their lifetime. 59% of PWID reported injecting heroin, 39% phentanyl, 13% amphetamines. 79% reported using sterile needles and syringes while injecting the last time and 21% were not. 17% were sharing non sterile injecting equipment during the last 30 days. Conclusions Younger age when started injecting drugs, duration of injecting drugs and imprisonment increased the risk of using unsterile needles and syringes and sharing injecting equipment. Main messages Behavioural risk factors are related to higher risks of drug use related infectious diseases. Targeted psychosocial interventions are needed to prevent the behavioural risks of injecting drug use.


2021 ◽  
pp. 000486742110481
Author(s):  
Ashleigh C Stewart ◽  
Reece Cossar ◽  
Anna Lee Wilkinson ◽  
Nick Scott ◽  
Paul Dietze ◽  
...  

Background: Community reintegration from prison is typically stressful, with several health and social outcomes impacting psychiatric well-being during this time, often exacerbated among individuals with histories of drug use. Longitudinal data was used to assess change in psychiatric well-being over 2 years following release from prison among men who reported a recent history of injecting drug use. Methods: Data for this study come from the Prison and Transition Health cohort study of 400 men recruited in prison prior to release and followed up over three time points. Psychiatric well-being was assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. We calculated change in individual General Health Questionnaire scores between interviews and identified covariates associated with General Health Questionnaire score using linear mixed-effects regression. Results: Data from 690 follow-up interviews among 326 participants were included in analyses. There was considerable variation in individuals’ General Health Questionnaire scores. Moving accommodation frequently and frequent illicit drug injections were associated with an increase in General Health Questionnaire score (i.e. decline in psychiatric well-being). Two or more prior adult imprisonment episodes, social supports and past month primary healthcare attendance were associated with a decrease in General Health Questionnaire score. Conclusion: Our findings identify health, social and structural influences on psychiatric well-being after release from prison that can inform re-entry programmes to support community reintegration.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashleigh Cara Stewart ◽  
Reece Cossar ◽  
Shelley Walker ◽  
Anna Lee Wilkinson ◽  
Brendan Quinn ◽  
...  

Abstract Background There are significant challenges associated with studies of people released from custodial settings, including loss to follow-up in the community. Interpretation of findings with consideration of differences between those followed up and those not followed up is critical in the development of evidence-informed policies and practices. We describe attrition bias in the Prison and Transition Health (PATH) prospective cohort study, and strategies employed to minimise attrition. Methods PATH involves 400 men with a history of injecting drug use recruited from three prisons in Victoria, Australia. Four interviews were conducted: one pre-release (‘baseline’) and three interviews at approximately 3, 12, and 24 months post-release (‘follow-up’). We assessed differences in baseline characteristics between those retained and not retained in the study, reporting mean differences and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).  Results Most participants (85%) completed at least one follow-up interview and 162 (42%) completed all three follow-up interviews. Retained participants were younger than those lost to follow-up (mean diff − 3.1 years, 95% CI -5.3, − 0.9). There were no other statistically significant differences observed in baseline characteristics. Conclusion The high proportion of participants retained in the PATH cohort study via comprehensive follow-up procedures, coupled with extensive record linkage to a range of administrative datasets, is a considerable strength of the study. Our findings highlight how strategic and comprehensive follow-up procedures, frequent contact with participants and secondary contacts, and established working relationships with the relevant government departments can improve study retention and potentially minimise attrition bias.


2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Chiaotzu Lee ◽  
Ashraf Docrat

Abstract Background Despite the continuing decline of HIV/AIDS incidence and prevalence in the general population of Vietnam, HIV rates remains high in three key subpopulations: injecting drug users (IDUs), men who have sex with men (MSM) and female sex workers (FSWs). This study aims to identify the common sociodemographic characteristics and behavioural risk factors among three key populations for HIV infection in Vietnam. Methods This study used a systematic review and meta-analysis to synthesise findings from published studies on HIV prevalence and associated risk factors among the three at-risk groups. Five electronic databases were used to identify peer-reviewed articles in relevant topics. Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software was used to estimate pooled prevalence in the combined study population and to determine the effect sizes of the common risk factors on HIV outcome. Results Of the 18 included studies, 6 focused on IDUs, 8 on FSWs and 4 on MSM, accounting for a total of 16,304 participants. The overall prevalence of HIV among the three at-risk groups based on meta-analysis was 11.8% (95%CI: 0.072-0.188). The identified common risk behaviours for HIV infection included injecting drug use (OR: 21.3, 95%CI: 6.5-69.3), sharing injecting equipment (OR: 4.2, 95%CI: 2.1-8.2) and inconsistent condom use (OR: 2.6, 95%CI: 1.5-4.4). The associated socio-demographic characteristics with HIV (+) included young age, single/ unmarried, low education and income. Conclusions/Key messages The findings of this study suggested that injecting drug use may can contribute to developing more affective prevention measures targeting these high-risk groups and reducing the risk of HIV transmission to the general population.


Author(s):  
Kristin Hanoa ◽  
Ola Røed Bilgrei ◽  
Kristin Buvik ◽  
Linn Gjersing
Keyword(s):  
Drug Use ◽  

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francis O. Oguya ◽  
Patrick R. Kenya ◽  
Francisca Ongecha ◽  
Patrick Mureithi ◽  
Helgar Musyoka ◽  
...  

Abstract Background A Cross-sectional Rapid Situational Assessment of People Who Inject Drug (PWIDs) applying Respondent Driven sampling techniques (RDS) was used to recruit subjects/participants in a study aimed at assessing HIV prevalence and risk behaviors among injecting drug users in Nairobi and Coastal regions of Kenya. There is paucity of data and information on injecting drug use in sub-Saharan Africa and there is sufficient evidence of existence of the environment for development and growth of injecting drug use. Past studies on PWID and its association to HIV and AIDS that have been conducted in Kenya do not provide sufficient information to support effective planning and comprehensive national response to the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Methods A cross-sectional study design was adopted in which a set of initial subjects referred to as ‘seeds’ were first identified from which an expanding chain of referrals were obtained, with subjects from each wave referring subjects of subsequent waves. The seeds were drawn randomly from the population and interviewed to pick the one with the largest network and other unique characteristics. A maximum of twelve seeds were recruited. The second stage involved conducting assessment visits to the sites to identify potential collaborators that included non-governmental organizations (NGOs), drug treatment centres, health facilities, community based organizations (CBO’s) among others. Three NGOs located in the coast region and one in Nairobi region were identified to assist in identifying drug injection locations and potential participants. Key informant interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were also conducted using interview guides. Results A total of 646 individuals (344 in Nairobi and 302 at the coast) were recruited for the study between January and March 2010. Of these 590 (91%) were male and 56 (9%) were female. Findings showed that most PWIDs initiated injecting drug use between the ages of 20–29 years, with the youngest age of initiation being 11 years and oldest age being 53 years. Most commonly injected drug was heroin (98%), with a small (2%) percentage injecting cocaine. Other non-injecting methods such as smoking or combining these two drugs with other drugs such as cannabis or Rohypnol were also common. Most PWIDs used other substances (cigarettes, alcohol, and cannabis) before initiating injecting drug use. The adjusted national HIV prevalence of PWIDs was 18.3% (19.62% unadjusted) with PWIDs in Nairobi region registering 18.33% (20.58% unadjusted) compared PWIDs for Coastal region indicating 18.27% (18.59% - unadjusted). The gender based HIV prevalence showed that women were more at risk of acquiring HIV (44.51%-adjusted) compared to men (15.97%-adjusted). The age specific HIV prevalence showed that PWIDs who initiated injecting at 11–19 years (44.7% adjusted) were most at risk in Nairobi compared to those who initiated injecting at age 20–24 years (23.2% - adjusted) in the coastal region. While all PWIDs continue to be at risk in the two regions, those from the Western parts of Nairobi, Kenya were at a relatively higher risk given their increased propensity for sharing injecting equipment and solutions. Conclusions Compared to the national HIV prevalence of (4.9%), the results show that People Who Inject Drugs (PWIDs) are at particularly high risk of infection in Kenya and there is urgent need for intervention (KenPHIA, 2018). This study also showed clear evidence that 70% of PWIDs are primary school educated, engage in high risk injecting and sexual behaviors comprising sharing of injecting equipment, unprotected heterosexual and homosexual sex. Given that initiation of injecting drug use begins early and peaks after formal school years (20–29 years), prevention programmes should be targeted at primary and secondary school students, college and out of school youth. Further, to protect People who inject drugs (PWIDs) from HIV infection, the country should introduce free Needle Syringe Programs (NSP) with provision of condoms and Methadone Assisted Therapy (MAT) as a substitute for drug use.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document