[ad_1]
More than 100 new cases of HIV have been identified among drug addicts in downtown Glasgow between 2015 and 2017
Research suggests that an increase in cocaine injection by cocaine and homelessness is at the root of a 10-fold increase in HIV infection among drug addicts in Glasgow.
Glasgow's downtown epidemic is the largest in the UK for over 30 years.
More than 100 new cases of infection have been identified among drug addicts in the city between 2015 and 2017.
Previously, the number of new cases among drug addicts in Scotland had "remained stable", about 15 per year.
Scientists at the Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) said that a seven-year study had shown that an increase in injections and homelessness were key factors for creating a "storm" of perfect HIV ".
Dr. Andrew McAuley, researcher on blood-borne viruses at GCU, said that there had been "an extremely large increase in the prevalence of HIV infection in the population of consumers of injectable drugs in Glasgow ".
He said the situation was "largely motivated by an HIV epidemic detected for the first time in 2015".
Copyright of the image
Getty Images
There have been calls for the establishment of safe "repair rooms"
Dr. McAuley also claimed that the study, published in the medical journal Lancet HIV, supported those who advocated for the creation of a safe drug consumption room in downtown Glasgow.
He pointed out that more than nine in 10 people diagnosed with HIV are currently successfully engaged in treatment.
Dr. McAuley said, "HIV prevalence has been low and stable in this population since the major epidemics of HIV in the 1980s in Edinburgh and Dundee.
"However, HIV prevalence in Glasgow has increased tenfold among injecting drug users over the last seven years, from 1% to over 10% in the city center.
"The main factors of infection are the increase in cocaine injection and homelessness.
"We also have a large population of people who inject into public places in Glasgow at a time when HIV has re-emerged.
"A combination of these factors has created an ideal storm for rapid HIV transmission among injecting drug users in Glasgow."
Heroin-badisted treatment
The research, conducted jointly with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and the University of Western Scotland, found that the number of HIV addicts increased from one in 87 in 2011- 12 to 25 out of 231 in 2017-2018.
The proportion of infected users increased from 1.1% to 10.8%.
The study – conducted between 2011 and 2018 – involved nearly 4,000 injecting drug users in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde regions.
The Glasgow HIV epidemic has occurred "despite the existence of a comprehensive harm reduction environment," revealed the research.
He pointed out that more than one million clean needles and syringes are dispensed to injection drug users each year.
Dr. McAuley said the research "provides additional rationale for interventions such as the proposed drug consumption room and heroin-badisted treatment services in Glasgow".
He added: "What is crucial, more than 90% of people diagnosed in the context of the epidemic have been successfully implicated in HIV treatment thanks to the multidisciplinary response put in place by the board of health. "
The Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP), which supports the opening of a "safe" injection room, is pleased with the results of the study.
Susanne Millar, chief executive officer of the corps' strategy and operations, said that he was providing "credible new evidence to go beyond current methods of helping this very vulnerable group".
She added: "We plan to open a heroin-badisted treatment center in Glasgow later this year, which will also benefit heroin users who inject cocaine." , one of the groups most at risk for HIV transmission. "
Source link
