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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Don C. Des Jarlais, PhD¹, Theresa Perlis, PhD¹, Holly Hagan, PhD², Kamyar Arasteh, PhD¹, Theodore M. Hammett, PhD³, Wei Liu, MD⁴, Ly K. Van, MD⁵, Anneli Uuskula⁶, Anna Lyubenova⁷, and Samuel R. Friedman, PhD⁸. (1) Baron Edmond de Rothschild Chemical Dependency Institute, Beth Israel Medical Center, 160 Water Street - 24th Floor, New York, NY 10038, 212.256.2548, dcdesjarla@aol.com, (2) Center for Drug Use & HIV Research, National Development & Research Institutes, 71 West 23rd Street, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10010, (3) Abt Associates Inc., 55 Wheeler Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, (4) Guangxi Center for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control, 89 Taoyuan Road, Nanning, 530021, China, (5) Lang Son Provincial Health Service, 50 Dinh Tien Hoang, Lang Son, Vietnam, (6) University of Tartu, Ulikooli 18, Tartu, 50090, Estonia, (7) Initiative for Health Foundation, 71 W. 23rd St., New York, NY 10010, (8) IAR, National Develpment & Research Institutes, 71 West 23d Street, 8th floor, New York, NY 10010

Background: To assess patterns of HIV prevalence among ethnic minority versus ethnic majority injecting drug users (IDUs), Methods: Data on HIV prevalence among ethnic minority and majority IDUs from Sofia, Bulgaria; Tallinn, Estonia, Guangxi, China and Lang Son, Vietnam; and New York City, USA. The Sofia data (n = 773) were collected at the beginning of the local HIV epidemic, the Tallinn (n = 783) data approximately 5 years into the local epidemic, the Lang Son, Vietnam/Guangxi, China border area (n = 3110) data approximately 10 years into the local epidemic, and the New York (n = 15,832) data covered the first 25 years of the epidemic. Results: HIV prevalence was significantly higher among ethnic minority IDUs in all sites (Roma in Sofia, Russians in Tallinn, Tay and Zhuang in China/Vietnam, African-Americans in New York). Ethnic differences were present at a very early stage of the Sofia epidemic (2% prevalence). The initial differences appear to have arisen from concentration of drug distribution and very high-risk injection settings in ethnic minority areas. Relatively large differences of 10%-15% in seroprevalence emerged by years 5 to 10 of local epidemics and persisted for over 25 years in New York. Conclusions: The location of drug distribution and very high-risk settings in minority areas may produce ethnic differences in HIV prevalence in the very early stages of an epidemic that then persist over very long time periods. HIV prevention efforts should provide extensive safer injection supplies to IDUs in ethnic minority areas.

Learning Objectives:

• 1.Participants will be able to understand the global problems of HIV in ethnic minority drug users
• 2.Understand potential mechanisms for the development of higher HIV prevalence among ethnic minority drug users
• 3.Advocate for the special HIV prevention needs of ethnic minority drug users

Keywords: Ethnic Minorities, International Public Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation