Sexual practices, sexually transmitted diseases and other risk factors for HIV among injecting drug users

Abstract

Data were collected from 814 clients attending anonymously for counselling before tests for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection at the Burnett Clinic in Auckland. Just over 10 per cent of clients (n = 83) reported ever having injected drugs. This group was matched according to age, gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation with an equal sized control group drawn from clients who had not injected drugs. The groups were compared in terms of their sexual practices, sexual partnerships, other drug use, current and past health status and their perception of HIV risk. The injecting drug users reported more sex partners than the nonusers, they were less likely to be in a relationship and they were less likely to be monogamous. Vaginal and oral sex were the most common practices in both groups but anal sex was more common among users than the nonusers. Regular condom use was reported by less than a quarter of each group. The health status of drug users was generally poorer than that of the nonusers. They reported greater use of alcohol and other drugs, more mental health problems, and more symptoms of ill health. They also had experienced more sexually-transmitted diseases. Only 1 per cent of users and 2 per cent of nonusers tested positively for HIV, although users saw themselves and their partners as at greater risk of HIV infection than the nonusers.