HIV risk behaviors but absence of infection among drug users in detoxification centers outside Yunnan province, China, 1993.

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.