Winslow M, Subramaniam M, Ng W L, Lee A, Song G, Chan Y H
Community Addictions Management Programme, Institute of Mental Health and Woodbridge Hospital, Singapore.
Singapore Med J. 2007 Jun;48(6):504-8.
All over the world, Hepatitis C virus (HCV) accounts for an estimated 130 million chronic infections. Injection drug use has become one of the most important risk factors for HCV, and within the injection drug user population, the prevalence of HCV antibody ranges from 70 to 95 percent depending on an individual's length of use and the prevalence of infection in the community. This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of and the risk factors for Hepatitis C antibodies in injecting drug users presenting to the Community Addictions Management Programme (CAMP) in Singapore.
Eligibility criteria for inclusion in this study were all intravenous buprenorphine users presenting to CAMP. 106 subjects, who consented to the study, completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire, and underwent a urine and blood analysis.
The prevalence rate for HCV was 42.5 percent among the subjects included in our study. The odds of seroprevalence in those sharing needles were 5.6 times that of those who were not, and the odds of seroprevalence among those using with others (peers or partners) were 6.3 times, as compared to among those who were individual users. Racial differences were also seen, but these could be accounted for by the sharing of needles.
This study provides important local data at the onset of an early buprenorphine-injecting epidemic in Singapore. This data is useful for disease prevention and healthcare planning.
在全球范围内，丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）估计导致了1.3亿例慢性感染。注射吸毒已成为感染HCV最重要的风险因素之一，在注射吸毒人群中，HCV抗体的流行率在70%至95%之间，这取决于个人的使用时长以及社区中的感染流行率。本研究旨在确定前往新加坡社区成瘾管理项目（CAMP）的注射吸毒者中丙型肝炎抗体的流行率及其风险因素。
纳入本研究的合格标准为所有前往CAMP的静脉注射丁丙诺啡使用者。106名同意参与研究的受试者完成了一份由访谈员填写的问卷，并接受了尿液和血液分析。
在我们研究纳入的受试者中，HCV的流行率为42.5%。共用针头者的血清阳性率几率是非共用者的5.6倍，与独自使用者相比，与他人（同伴或伴侣）一起使用毒品者的血清阳性率几率是其6.3倍。还观察到了种族差异，但这些差异可由共用针头来解释。
本研究在新加坡早期丁丙诺啡注射流行开始时提供了重要的本地数据。这些数据对疾病预防和医疗保健规划很有用。
