Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?

The majority of hepatitis C prevention research among injectors is concerned with preventing initial exposure to the virus. Given that the prevalence of hepatitis C among injectors is between 50 and 60 per cent, one aim should be to prevent further transmission of the virus from infected to non-infe...

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Main Author: Carruthers, Susan
Format: Journal Article
Published: Taylor and Francis Ltd 2005
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31419
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author Carruthers, Susan
author_facet Carruthers, Susan
author_sort Carruthers, Susan
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description The majority of hepatitis C prevention research among injectors is concerned with preventing initial exposure to the virus. Given that the prevalence of hepatitis C among injectors is between 50 and 60 per cent, one aim should be to prevent further transmission of the virus from infected to non-infected injectors. The major aim of this study was to investigate the risk management strategies hepatitis C positive injectors might take to prevent further transmission of the virus. A total of 111 hepatitis C positive injectors were recruited and interviewed with a questionnaire designed to gather information regarding current and past injecting behaviours and risk reduction options outlined in response to a series of injecting vignettes. The responses indicated that the majority of respondents recognised the risks associated with the various injecting scenarios and could describe actions by which they could reduce those risks. However, the examination of reported options revealed that while some of these would indeed eliminate the risk of further transmission others would be less effective because they either relied on unproven methods of removing viral material from used needle and syringes or the user assumed that other injectors had knowledge equivalent to that of the respondent.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-314192017-09-13T15:52:51Z Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do? Carruthers, Susan The majority of hepatitis C prevention research among injectors is concerned with preventing initial exposure to the virus. Given that the prevalence of hepatitis C among injectors is between 50 and 60 per cent, one aim should be to prevent further transmission of the virus from infected to non-infected injectors. The major aim of this study was to investigate the risk management strategies hepatitis C positive injectors might take to prevent further transmission of the virus. A total of 111 hepatitis C positive injectors were recruited and interviewed with a questionnaire designed to gather information regarding current and past injecting behaviours and risk reduction options outlined in response to a series of injecting vignettes. The responses indicated that the majority of respondents recognised the risks associated with the various injecting scenarios and could describe actions by which they could reduce those risks. However, the examination of reported options revealed that while some of these would indeed eliminate the risk of further transmission others would be less effective because they either relied on unproven methods of removing viral material from used needle and syringes or the user assumed that other injectors had knowledge equivalent to that of the respondent. 2005 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31419 10.1080/09595230500102673 Taylor and Francis Ltd fulltext
spellingShingle Carruthers, Susan
Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title_full Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title_fullStr Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title_full_unstemmed Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title_short Preventing hepatitis C: what can positive injectors do?
title_sort preventing hepatitis c: what can positive injectors do?
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31419