Harm reduction and HIV
The importance of harm reduction has grown significantly as 114 countries currently report HIV epidemics among injecting drug users (IDUs), and 5-10 per cent of all HIV infections result from injecting drug use. Sexual transmission of HIV is also a significant factor in amongst IDU communities. For instance over half of all women infected with HIV in the USA are either drug users or the sexual partners of IDUs. Of special concern are Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Myanmar and China, where HIV infection through injecting drug use is now the primary mode of transmission.
Recommended readings
- Harm reduction: tackling drug use and HIV in the developing world
- ( Department for International Development, UK , 2005)
- This statement, from the government of the United Kingdom, outlines its position on harm reduction. The effectiveness of harm reduction in preventing HIV infection among injecting drug users (IDUs),...
- Position statement: injecting drug users and access to HIV treatment
- ( International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS , 2005)
- Recommended reading
- This position statement, published by the Global Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (GNP+) and the International Community of Women Living with HIV and AIDS (ICW), explains why these two organisa...
- Rapid situation assessment of Malaysia
- ( G. Reid; A. Kamarulzaman; S. Kaur Sran / Centre for Harm Reduction, Melbourne , 2005)
- This situation assessment of Malaysia, produced by the Centre for Harm Reduction, examines drug issues from a public health and public security perspective. It highlights the complexity, challenges a...
- The World Drug Report 2004: chapter 1: the world drug problem
- ( United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime , 2004)
- Chapter one from UNODC’s World Drug report, provides a status report on the world drug problem, including an overview of injecting drug users (IDUs) and HIV and AIDS. This section of the report provi...
- HIV in injecting drug users in Asian countries
- ( A Wodak; R. Ali; M. Farrell / British Medical Journal , 2004)
- This paper, published by the British Medical Journal, asks why proven strategies to prevent the spread of HIV infection among and from injecting drug users are not being more widely adopted in Asian c...
