HIV Among Drug Users on the Rise

HIV Among Drug Users on the Rise
July 14, 2003

Research Summary

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study finds that HIV cases among intravenous-drug users increased in 2000 after five years of steady declines, Reuters reported July 11.

According to the report, which included data collected from 25 states, there were 2,514 new cases of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, in 2000.

The CDC plans to conduct further research to determine whether HIV/AIDS is making a comeback among intravenous-drug users.

People who inject drugs and their partners are among the groups at high risk of contracting the disease.

"It could be that some of the prevention messages have lost their fervor in the communities and the advances in anti-retroviral drug treatment may have lulled some people into a false sense of security," said Tanya Sharpe, a behavioral scientist and an AIDS expert with the CDC.

A key focus of the CDC is to make AIDS testing more commonplace.

The research appears in the July 11 issue of CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Drug Use Tied to Rising HIV Rate Among Black Americans

Drug Use Puts Americans at Risk for AIDS

Contingency Management Added to Methadone Maintenance Lowers HIV Risk Behaviors in Patients with Cocaine Abuse or Dependence

Injection Drug Use Up Among Younger Heroin Treatment Clients

AIDS Action Policy Facts: Needle Exchange

AIDS Action: What Works in HIV Prevention for Substance Users