HIV prevention interventions for female sexual partners of injection drug users in Hanoi, Vietnam: 24-month evaluation results.

Vietnam's HIV epidemic is driven by injection drug use. Most IDUs are sexually active and may infect their female sexual partners (SPs). We implemented peer-based HIV prevention interventions for SPs in Hanoi.

Female sexual partners of injection drug users in Vietnam: an at-risk population in urgent need of HIV prevention services.

Vietnam's HIV epidemic has been driven by injection drug use, with HIV prevalence among injection drug users (IDUs) of ~30%. Most IDUs are sexually active and may infect their female sexual partners (SPs). Male dominance in sexual decisions is deeply embedded in Vietnamese culture.

Reducing HIV infection among new injecting drug users in the China-Vietnam Cross Border Project.

Objectives: To assess an HIV prevention programme for injecting drug users (IDU) in the crossborder area between China and Vietnam.

Design: Serial cross-sectional surveys (0, 6, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months) of community-recruited current IDU.

Methods: The project included peer educator outreach and the large-scale distribution of sterile injection equipment.

Patterns of HIV prevalence and HIV risk behaviors among injection drug users prior to and 24 months following implementation of cross-border HIV prevention interventions in northern Vietnam and southern China.

In 2002, we implemented a 4-year HIV prevention intervention for injection drug users (IDUs) in Lang Son Province, Vietnam, and Ning Ming County, Guangxi Province, China, a cross-border region seriously affected by inter-twined epidemics of heroin injection and HIV infection. The interventions involve peer education on HIV risk reduction and provision of new needles/syringes through direct distribution and pharmacy vouchers. We consider this to be a structural intervention in which risk reduction information and sterile injection equipment are diffused through the IDU populations and not limited to those who actually interact with peer educators.

Community attitudes toward HIV prevention for injection drug users: findings from a cross-border project in southern China and northern Vietnam.

Success of HIV prevention projects for injection drug users (IDUs) depends on the support of the communities in which they are implemented. This article presents data from cross-sectional community surveys of HIV knowledge and attitudes toward peer-based HIV prevention interventions for injection drug users in a border area of Lang Son Province, Vietnam and Ning Ming County, Guangxi Province, China. Analysis of these surveys at baseline and 18 months reveals generally high or improving levels of HIV knowledge and positive attitudes toward the interventions in both Vietnam and China.

Correlates of HIV status among injection drug users in a border region of southern China and northern Vietnam.

This article presents an analysis of the correlates of HIV status among samples of injection drug users (IDUs) in Lang Son Province, Vietnam (n=348), and Ning Ming County, Guangxi Province, China (n=294), who were interviewed and tested for HIV antibody just before the start of a peer-based HIV prevention intervention in this border region. Participants were largely male, in their 20s, and single. Logistic regression analysis suggests that among Chinese IDUs, border-related factors (eg, living closer to the border, buying drugs across the border more frequently) and younger age are the best predictors of HIV positivity.