Dataset Information

Refining HIV risk: the modifying effects of youth, gender and education among people who inject drugs in Poland.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

The goal of this study was to examine specific factors placing young (aged <30) women who inject drugs at higher risk for HIV, and to establish the need for targeted interventions within this population.

Methods

A national cross-sectional sero-survey was conducted in 2004-2005 in six regions in Poland. A snowball sample of ever-injectors was recruited from drug treatment facilities and the surrounding community. Log-binomial regression was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (PRs).

Results

A total of 491 injection drug users younger than 30 were recruited, of whom 159 were women and 332 were men. The prevalence of HIV was 16.4% and 9.6% among women and men, respectively. In multivariate analysis, young female injectors whose education terminated at the primary level were more likely to be HIV-positive compared to males with a similar level of education (PR?=?3.34, 95% CI?=?1.86-6.00) and more highly educated women (PR?=?4.16, 95% CI?=?2.21-7.82).

Conclusions

This study confirms an elevated risk of HIV among under-educated young women. Suggestions for specific interventions to reduce HIV transmission are presented. Additional research is needed to quantify the differential distribution of risk behaviors which amplify their likelihood of transmission.

SUBMITTER: Czerwinski M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3720710 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Refining HIV risk: the modifying effects of youth, gender and education among people who inject drugs in Poland.

Czerwinski Michal M McNutt Louise-Anne LA DeHovitz Jack A JA Zielinski Andrzej A Rosinska Magdalena M

PloS one 20130723 7

<h4>Objective</h4>The goal of this study was to examine specific factors placing young (aged <30) women who inject drugs at higher risk for HIV, and to establish the need for targeted interventions within this population.<h4>Methods</h4>A national cross-sectional sero-survey was conducted in 2004-2005 in six regions in Poland. A snowball sample of ever-injectors was recruited from drug treatment facilities and the surrounding community. Log-binomial regression was used to estimate adjusted preva ...[more]

PMID: 23935852

Similar Datasets

Project description:Mounting evidence suggests that laws and policies prohibiting illegal drug use could have a central role in shaping health outcomes among people who inject drugs (PWID). To date, no systematic review has characterised the influence of laws and legal frameworks prohibiting drug use on HIV prevention and treatment.Consistent with PRISMA guidelines, we did a systematic review of peer-reviewed scientific evidence describing the association between criminalisation of drug use and HIV prevention and treatment-related outcomes among PWID. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, SCOPUS, PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, CINAHL, Web of Science, and other sources. To be included in our review, a study had to meet the following eligibility criteria: be published in a peer-reviewed journal or presented as a peer-reviewed abstract at a scientific conference; examine, through any study design, the association between an a-priori set of indicators related to the criminalisation of drugs and HIV prevention or treatment among PWID; provide sufficient details on the methods followed to allow critical assessment of quality; be published or presented between Jan 1, 2006, and Dec 31, 2014; and be published in the English language.We identified 106 eligible studies comprising 29 longitudinal, 49 cross-sectional, 22 qualitative, two mixed methods, four mathematical modelling studies, and no randomised controlled trials. 120 criminalisation indicators were identified (range 1-3 per study) and 150 HIV indicators were identified (1-5 per study). The most common criminalisation indicators were incarceration (n=38) and street-level policing (n=39), while the most frequent HIV prevention and treatment indicators were syringe sharing (n=35) and prevalence of HIV infection among PWID (n=28). Among the 106 studies included in this review, 85 (80%) suggested that drug criminalisation has a negative effect on HIV prevention and treatment, 10 (9%) suggested no association, five (5%) suggested a beneficial effect, one (1%) suggested both beneficial and negative effects, and five (5%) suggested both null and negative effects.These data confirm that criminalisation of drug use has a negative effect on HIV prevention and treatment. Our results provide an objective evidence base to support numerous international policy initiatives to reform legal and policy frameworks criminalising drug use.Canadian Institutes of Health Research and US National Institutes of Health.

Dataset Information

Refining HIV risk: the modifying effects of youth, gender and education among people who inject drugs in Poland.

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Refining HIV risk: the modifying effects of youth, gender and education among people who inject drugs in Poland.

Similar Datasets

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