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Prevalence and risk factors for injection site skin infections among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Tehran
Author(s) -
Noroozi Mehdi,
Armoon Bahram,
Ghisvand Hesam,
Noroozi Alireza,
Karimy Mahmood,
Bazrafshan Mohammad Rafi,
Marshall Brandon D L,
Dieji Bahman
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of cosmetic dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.626
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1473-2165
pISSN - 1473-2130
DOI - 10.1111/jocd.12675
Subject(s) - medicine , injection drug use , dermatology , environmental health , drug , pharmacology , drug injection
Summary Background/Objectives Injection drug use is one of the major public health problems in Iran. Injection drug use is associated with numerous negative health outcomes, such as blood‐borne infections ( HIV , HCV ) and injection site skin infections (abscesses, cellulitis). The aim of this study was to determine prevalence of injection site skin infections and its associated risk factors among people who inject drugs ( PWID ) in Tehran, Iran. Methods The cross‐sectional study was conducted from March to August 2016 in Tehran province. A total of 500 PWID were recruited by convenience and snowball sampling from Drop‐in Centers ( DIC ) in the South of Tehran . Our primary outcomes were self‐report of ever having injection sites skin infections and receiving treatment for them . We first examined associations between individual variables and lifetime history of having injection site infections in bivariate analysis using the chi‐square or Fisher's exact tests, as appropriate. Variables with P ‐value <.2 were included in a multiple logistic regression model .Results Overall, 40% ( CI 95%: 30.3%, 52.2%) of participants reported ever having an injection site infection. In the multivariable model, those with low socioeconomic status ( AOR = 2.4, P = .03), self‐reported as HIV positive ( AOR =1.6, P = .01), reporting more than 3 injections per day ( AOR = 4.1, P = .03) and reuse of their own syringes ( AOR = 8.5, P = .03) were more likely to have injection sites skin infections. PWID who used needle and syringe program ( NSP ) services were less likely to report injection site infections ( AOR = 0.5 , P = .04). Conclusion We have identified several risk factors for injection sites infections among PWID , including frequency of injection per day, reuse of their own syringes, not using NSP services, HIV status, socioeconomic status with skin infections in PWID . Prevention strategies to reduce skin infections should focus on high‐risk injection behaviors and improving access to NSP services.