BACKGROUND We aimed to measure the overlap between the social networks of injection drug users (IDUs) and the patterns of related hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections among IDUs. METHODS A cohort of 199 IDUs (138 of whom were HCV RNA positive) was recruited from a local drug scene in Melbourne, Australia, and was studied using social network analysis and molecular phylogenetic analysis of 2 reg...

OBJECTIVES Few prospective studies are available on the relationship between incarceration and HIV risk among injection drug users (IDUs). The authors evaluated self-reported rates of syringe sharing and incarceration among a cohort of IDUs. METHODS This study analyzed syringe lending by HIV-infected IDUs and syringe borrowing by HIV-negative IDUs among participants enrolled in the Vancouver ...

Intraductal ultrasonography (IDUS) is one of the most useful diagnostic tools for various extrahepatic biliary diseases. However, conventional IDUS has some limitations in providing accurate cross-sectional imaging of the bile duct in patients with extensive pneumobilia. Using a balloon-sheathed catheter, the US system (balloon-sheathed IDUS) can overcome these limitations. Sixteen patients und...

OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of continued injecting drug use, enrolment in an opiate substitution treatment programme (OSTP), or cessation of injecting drug use on the uptake and course of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Design A prospective observational study of all participants in the Swiss HIV Cohort Study followed between 1997 and 2006 was carried out. M...

The aim of this study is to explore the prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among injection drug users (IDUs) with and without human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in southern Taiwan. For 562 IDUs (265 anti-HIV negative, 297 anti-HIV positive), we analyzed liver function, anti-HIV antibody, anti-HCV antibody, HCV viral loads, and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). HIV RNA ...

AIMS To measure the frequency of syringe borrowing in young Irish injecting drug users (IDUs) and identify associated characteristics. DESIGN Cross-sectional survey. SETTING Addiction treatment services in Dublin. PARTICIPANTS Treated IDUs (N = 246). MEASUREMENTS Data on drug injecting and syringe borrowing in the previous 6 months. FINDINGS The median age was 22 years and the median ...

BACKGROUND/AIMS Intraductal ultrasonography (IDUS) has been performed as an adjunct to endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) during radiocontrast cholangiography (RC). Radiation exposure during RC poses a health risk to both patients and examiners. We evaluated the feasibility of IDUS without RC in various extrahepatic biliary diseases. METHODS IDUS was performed with the insertion of a...

We studied cases of necrotizing fasciitis among injection drug users (IDUs) and non-IDUs who presented at the University of California Davis Medical Center from 1984 through 1999. Of 107 patients, 59 (55%) were IDUs and 48 (45%) non-IDUs. Among IDUs, 32 (54%) recently injected at the site of infection, and 17 patients (29%) presented with an abscess. Among non-IDUs, 17 (35%) reported a recent i...

Using Bayesian capture-recapture analysis, we estimated the number of current injecting drug users (IDUs) in Scotland in 2006 from the cross-counts of 5670 IDUs listed on four data-sources: social enquiry reports (901 IDUs listed), hospital records (953), drug treatment agencies (3504), and recent Hepatitis C virus (HCV) diagnoses (827 listed as IDU-risk). Further, we accessed exact numbers of ...

OBJECTIVE To establish the prevalence of injecting practices that carry a risk of HIV infection among injection drug users (IDUs) in Indonesia and to examine the risk of sexual transmission of HIV from IDUs to noninjecting populations. DESIGN A first round of behavioral surveillance among community-recruited male IDUs in 3 cities. METHODS In late 2002, IDU gathering places were mapped in 3 ...