Recent HIV testing and self-reported HIV prevalence among men who inject drugs in Afghanistan: a nationwide survey in 2019-2020.

IF 4 2区 社会学 Q1 SUBSTANCE ABUSE Harm Reduction Journal Pub Date : 2025-03-14 DOI:10.1186/s12954-025-01183-2
Ajmal Sabawoon, Sima Naderi, Said Iftekhar Sadaat, Abdul Rasheed, Alim Atarud, Fatemeh Tavakoli, Hamid Sahrifi, Ali Mirzazadeh
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Abstract

Background: People who inject drugs (PWID) remain at high risk for HIV in many countries, including Afghanistan. Previous reports on HIV testing and prevalence in Afghanistan were published in 2012. This study assessed recent HIV testing and self-reported HIV prevalence among male PWID in Afghanistan from 2019 to 2020.

Method: We visited 374 public venues and hotpots where PWID used to gather and meet their peers across 8 cities in Afghanistan to enroll eligible participants in our study. Using interviews and a survey, our trained interviewers collected data on the demographics, types of drugs, HIV testing history, and self-reported HIV status of the participants. We analyzed the data using the venues and hotpots as clusters to report the percentages of recent HIV tests and self-reported HIV prevalence overall and in subgroups defined by demographic characteristics and locations.

Results: Among the 1385 participants, most were from Kabul city (28.9%), spoke Dari (67.4%), were aged 25-34 years (42.1%), and were married (52.4%). Overall, 70.7% (95% CI 67.6-73.6) (ranging from 20.0% in Kandahar to 99.3% in Mazar-i-Sharif) were tested for HIV within the past 12 months. Among those who had ever been tested for HIV, 20.7% (95% CI 17.8-24.0) (ranging from 0% in Zarang to 63.2% in Kabul) reported being positive for HIV.

Conclusion: Compared with the results of a similar study in 2012, we found a significant improvement in HIV testing coverage among PWID in Afghanistan. The high self-reported HIV prevalence among this group also highlights the need for targeted screening and treatment programs for PWID in Afghanistan, particularly in the cities of Kabul and Jalalabad.

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来源期刊
Harm Reduction Journal
Harm Reduction Journal Medicine-Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
CiteScore
5.90
自引率
9.10%
发文量
126
审稿时长
26 weeks
期刊介绍: Harm Reduction Journal is an Open Access, peer-reviewed, online journal whose focus is on the prevalent patterns of psychoactive drug use, the public policies meant to control them, and the search for effective methods of reducing the adverse medical, public health, and social consequences associated with both drugs and drug policies. We define "harm reduction" as "policies and programs which aim to reduce the health, social, and economic costs of legal and illegal psychoactive drug use without necessarily reducing drug consumption". We are especially interested in studies of the evolving patterns of drug use around the world, their implications for the spread of HIV/AIDS and other blood-borne pathogens.
期刊最新文献
Correction: The implementation of safer drug consumption facilities in Scotland: a mixed methods needs assessment and feasibility study for the city of Edinburgh. Recent HIV testing and self-reported HIV prevalence among men who inject drugs in Afghanistan: a nationwide survey in 2019-2020. Social support and HIV management among people who inject drugs: in-depth interviews in Delhi, India. Anonymous Opt-Out HIV and hepatitis C screening at a syringe services program in Florida. City-level drug policies in Portugal: the COVID-19 pandemic as an analyzer of harm reduction responsiveness in Porto and Lisbon.
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