Abstract
BackgroundThe human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are major public health problems. Many studies have been performed to investigate the association between demographic and behavioral factors and HIV or HCV infection. However, some of the results of these studies have been in conflict.Methodology/Principal FindingsThe data of all entrants in the 11 national methadone clinics in the Yi Autonomous Prefecture from March 2004 to December 2012 were collected from the national database. Several spatial regression models were used to analyze specific community characteristics associated with the prevalence of HIV and HCV infection at the township level. The study enrolled 6,417 adult patients. The prevalence of HIV infection, HCV infection and co-infection was 25.4%, 30.9%, and 11.0%, respectively. Prevalence exhibited stark geographical variations in the area studied. The four regression models showed Yi ethnicity to be associated with both the prevalence of HIV and of HIV/HCV co-infection. The male drug users in some northwestern counties had greater odds of being infected with HIV than female drug users, but the opposite was observed in some eastern counties. The ‘being in drug rehabilitation variable was found to be positively associated with prevalence of HCV infection in some southern townships, however, it was found to be negatively associated with it in some northern townships.Conclusions/SignificanceThe spatial modeling creates better representations of data such that public health interventions must focus on areas with high frequency of HIV/HCV to prevent further transmission of both HIV and HCV.
Highlights
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) have become a rapidly emerging global public health problem
Known risk factors like intravenous drug use and sharing needles were found to be associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection at the individual level in logistic regression, but they were not found to be associated with the prevalence of HIV at the population level [15]
The present study aims to identify some community characteristics associated with the prevalence of HIV and HCV infection among drug users in an Yi Autonomous Prefecture using spatial regression techniques
Summary
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) have become a rapidly emerging global public health problem. Many studies have been performed to investigate the association between demographic and behavioral factors and HIV or HCV infection among drug users at the individual level with contradictory results [13,14]. For this reason, it is important to recognize that many of these studies may be affected by regional differences and methodological limitations that may undermine the reliability and stability of their results. Few studies have used spatial regression techniques to analyze risk factors of HIV or HCV infection at the population level [13,15]. Some of the results of these studies have been in conflict
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