The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #44743

Alan Neaigus, PhD¹, V. Anna Gyarmathy, MS, MPH¹, Maureen Miller, PhD², Samuel R. Friedman, PhD¹, and Don C. Des Jarlais, PhD³. (1) Center for Drug Use and HIV Research, National Development and Research Institutes, Inc., 71 West 23rd Street, 8th Floor, New York City, NY 10010, 212-845-4480, neaigus@ndri.org, (2) Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 600 West 168th Street, PH-18, New York City, NY 10032, (3) National Development and Research Istitutes, Inc., Beth Israel Medical Center, 71 West 23rd Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10010

Objectives:: To determine the prevalence and correlates of injecting equipment sharing and higher-risk networks among new injecting drug users (IDUs).

Methods: Between February/1999-December/2001, 199 IDUs injecting 6 years or less and aged 18-30 were recruited in New York City. They were asked if, in the prior 30 days, they engaged in receptive sharing of syringes (RSS), or other injecting equipment (ROES), and if their network members injected daily, injected for more than five years or in multi-user settings, were infected with HIV, hepatitis B (HBV) or hepatitis C (HCV), or were men-who-had-sex-with-men. Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) are estimated by multivariate logistic regression.

Results: The mean age was 22.8 (SD=3.2); 80% were white and 67% male. The mean age at first injection was 19.4 years (SD=3.5). Infection prevalences were 3% HIVab, 21% HBVcAb, and 35% HCVab; 19% reported RSS, 32% ROES, and 65% higher-risk injecting networks. Correlates of both engaging in RSS or ROES and having higher-risk injecting networks (n=66, 33%) included injecting in public settings (aOR=5.8, 95%CI=1.6,20.7), not obtaining syringes from syringe exchanges or pharmacies (aOR=5.3, 95%CI=2.4,11.6), female gender (aOR=2.0, 95%CI=1.0,4.1), and younger age (aOR=1.11, 95%CI=1.0,1.25).

Conclusions: The majority of new IDUs have higher-risk injecting networks. Many, particularly women and younger new IDUs, also share injecting equipment. Interventions should particularly target women and younger new IDUs and their injecting networks, promote widespread and consistent use of syringe exchanges and pharmacies as sources of sterile syringes, and target public settings where new IDUs congregate or inject.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the session participant will be able to

• Understand the injecting network and behavioral risks for HIV, HBV and HCV infection among new injecting drug users.
• Describe the prevalence and correlates of injecting equipment sharing and injecting network risk among new injecting drug users.
• Use this information to develop or assess HIV, HBV or HCV risk reduction interventions among injecting drug users who have injected for six or fewer years.

Keywords: Injection Drug Users, Needle Sharing Exposure

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.