An epidemiologic study of drug abuse and HIV and AIDS in Malawi

Abstract

In this study we examine the prevalence of HIV among drug abusers in Malawi. A purposive sample of 200 drug abusers was invited to provide urine and blood samples. The subjects were selected from self-presenting drug abusers who visited a district hospital in Malawi. The urine samples from both men and women were tested for Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. Urine samples from women were also tested for pregnancy. The blood samples were tested for HIV. The study found a higher prevalence of HIV among non-injecting drug abusers, with those who abused alcohol being more likely to be HIV positive as compared to cannabis abusers. Prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) was, however, low. The main conclusion from this study is that drug abuse is a risk factor for HIV and not as much for STIs, even in non-injecting drug abusers. KEY WORDS: Malawi, drug abuse, cannabis, HIV epidemiology, non injecting drug use, sexually transmitted infection