Needle Exchange Programs
Synonyms
Definition
In 2006, injection drug users (IDUs) accounted for 12% of the 56,300 new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections in the USA (Hall et al., 2008). In 2007, 15% of the 43,000 new hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections and 44% of the 17,000 new hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections in the USA were among IDUs (Guardino et al., 2010). IDUs are susceptible to infection via sharing injection equipment and high-risk sexual behavior. While the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) recommends use of a new, sterile syringe each injection, many IDUs contract these viral infections through the sharing of contaminated syringes. In response to these viral epidemics, syringe exchange programs (SEPs) have been implemented in many countries including the United States (USA) (Mathers et al., 2010). These programs allow IDUs to exchange contaminated syringes for sterile syringes, with the goal of reducing the likelihood of IDUs’ sharing used...
References and Readings
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