       Document 1056
 DOCN  M9621056
 TI    HIV risk behaviors but absence of infection among drug users in
       detoxification centers outside Yunnan province, China, 1993.
 DT    9602
 AU    Zheng X; Tian C; Zhang G; Li D; Liu X; Hu DJ; Weniger BG; Dondero TJ;
       Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Chinese Academy of;
       Preventive Medicine, Beijing, China.
 SO    AIDS. 1995 Aug;9(8):959-63. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/96014973
 AB    OBJECTIVES: To date, HIV spread in China has occurred principally among
       injecting drug users (IDU) in remote border regions of Yunnan province.
       We therefore sought to better understand the risks for and prevalence of
       HIV infection among drug users in parts of China outside Yunnan
       province. METHODS: A behavioral survey of drug use and AIDS-related
       knowledge was conducted among all consenting drug users who entered
       treatment from 1 November to 31 December 1993 in seven provincial drug
       detoxification centers outside Yunnan province. After giving verbal
       informed consent, all drug users were tested for HIV. RESULTS: Of the
       1293 study participants, 207 (16%) reported injecting drugs. The
       proportion of IDU among all drug users varied widely by region, from 1%
       in Sha'anxi and Gansu provinces in the northwest region to 58% in
       Guangxi province in the south. IDU were more likely than non-IDU to be
       single and unemployed or self-employed, but did not differ in other
       demographic aspects. Among all drug users, 2% reported sharing needles
       without cleaning equipment, while 5% shared with some cleaning. Although
       1060 (82%) drug users had heard of AIDS and most knew about its sexual
       (79%), parenteral (77%), and perinatal (60%) modes of transmission, many
       had misconceptions about its spread by casual contact. Of the 207 IDU
       tested for HIV, none were HIV-positive (95% confidence interval,
       0--1.4). CONCLUSION: The absence of HIV infections detected in this
       study suggests that the prevalence of HIV is currently low among IDU in
       China outside the Yunnan province. However, the behavior of these IDU
       puts them at high risk for HIV infection. Prevention efforts are needed
       to prevent the spread of HIV among IDU throughout China and to avoid the
       experience of neighboring countries in Asia.
 DE    Adolescence  Adult  China/EPIDEMIOLOGY  Data Collection  Female  Human
       HIV Infections/*COMPLICATIONS/*EPIDEMIOLOGY/TRANSMISSION  HIV
       Seroprevalence  Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice  Male  Middle Age
       Questionnaires  Risk-Taking  Substance Abuse,
       Intravenous/*COMPLICATIONS/PSYCHOLOGY/THERAPY  JOURNAL ARTICLE

       SOURCE: National Library of Medicine.  NOTICE: This material may be
       protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.Code).

