title: High prevalence of HIV-1 and hepatitis C virus coinfection among injection drug users in the southeastern region of Yunnan, China.
abstract: The southeastern region of Yunnan province is a key site for drug trafficking and HIV-1 infection spread from the west of Yunnan and Laos to southeastern China. To investigate the prevalence of HIV-1 infection and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection among injection drug users (IDUs) in southeastern Yunnan, three cohorts of 285 addicts, including 242 IDUs and 43 oral drug users, living in the cities of Gejiu and Kaiyuan and the county of Yanshan were studied. HIV-1 and HCV infections were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and/or polymerase chain reaction. Data on the age, sex, risk behavior, drug use history, employment, ethnic background, and marriage status were obtained by interview. The overall prevalence of HIV-1 infection was 71.9%. The rate of HCV coinfection among 138 HIV-1-infected IDUs was 99.3%. Most HIV-infected IDUs were 20 to 35 years old (86.7%) and were ethnic Han (75.9%), suggesting that the epidemic in Yunnan is no longer confined to non-Han ethnic minorities. HIV prevalence in female IDUs (81.2%) was significantly higher than in male IDUs (68.2%) ( p <.05). The prevalence of HIV infection reached 68.4% after 1 year of injection drug use. Needle/syringe sharing is the major high risk factor for the spread of HIV-1 and HCV infections. Large-scale educational campaigns are urgently needed to reduce the spread of HIV and HCV infection in these regions.
authors.affiliation: Molecular and Cell Immunology Laboratory, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan, China.
authors.forename: Chiyu
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Rongge
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Xueshan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.forename: Shaoying
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.forename: Jianping
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Zunbin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhengzhen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Tong
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Decheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pu
authors.forename: Jianhua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takebe
authors.forename: Kunlong
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ben
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000821:virology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D012367:RNA, Viral