Psychiatric, Behavioural and Social Risk Factors for HIV Infection Among Female Drug Users

Abstract

Female drug users report greater psychopathology and risk behaviours than male drug users, putting them at greater risk for HIV. This mixed-methods study determined psychiatric, behavioural and social risk factors for HIV among 118 female drug users (27% (32/118) were HIV seropositive) in Barcelona. DSM-IV disorders were assessed using the Spanish Psychiatric Research Interview for Substance and Mental Disorders. 30 participants were interviewed in-depth. In stepwise multiple backward logistic regression, ever injected with a used syringe, antisocial personality disorder, had an HIV seropositive sexual partner and substance-induced major depressive disorder were associated with HIV seropositivity. Qualitative findings illustrate the complex ways in which psychiatric disorders and male drug-using partners interact with these risk factors. Interventions should address all aspects of female drug users' lives to reduce HIV.

Dual Diagnosis Screening Interview to Identify Psychiatric Comorbidity in Substance Users: Development and Validation of a Brief Instrument

“…Subjects included in the study were recruited for participation in different research projects in the drug-abuse field. These projects were developed either in outpatient treatment settings (community drug-abuse treatment centers, specific programs such as PTSD and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) clinics), inpatient treatment settings (hospital detoxification units and dual diagnosis units) and nontreatment settings (substance user volunteers in university research studies) [22,23,24,25,26]. …”

Women, drugs and HIV

“…There is a direct correlation between violence and increased HIV vulnerability as data show that women who have experienced intimate partner violence are less likely to use condoms and more likely to share needles, to have multiple sexual partners and to trade sex (Braitstein et al, 2003; Gilchrist, Blazquez, & Torrens, 2011). Women also report high rates of sexual violence from police and law enforcement agencies and experience high rates of incarceration.…”

Depression Among People Who Inject Drugs and Their Intimate Partners in Kazakhstan

“…Research conducted globally, but not in Central Asia, has found associations between depression and physical health (Salter, Lau, Go, Mehta, & Kirk, 2011), HIV seropositive status (Gilchrist, Blazquez, & Torrens, 2011), unsafe drug use (Gilchrist et al, 2011; Gu, Lau, Chen, Tsui, & Ling, 2011; Lundgren, Amodeo, & Chassler, 2005; Sarin, Singh, Samson, & Sweat, 2013), and high-risk sexual behaviors (Psaros, Israel, O’Cleirigh, Bedoya, & Safren, 2011). Predictors of depression identified in former Soviet Union (fSU) countries include older age (Roberts et al, 2010), alcohol consumption (Mentzakis, Suhrcke, Roberts, Murphy, & McKee, 2013), and lower levels of education (Goryakin, Suhrcke, Rocco, Roberts, & McKee, 2013; Roberts et al, 2010).…”