Seroprevalence of Hepatitits B, Hepatitits C, HIV and Syphilis infections among non-injecting drug users

Objective: While injection drug use is clearly a significant risk factor for the acquisition of certain infectious diseases, non-injection drug users (NIDUs) may also have higher risk than the general population, due to their involvement in risky behaviors. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of anti-HIV, anti-HCV, and HBsAg and VDRL seropositivity among a sample of non-injecting drug users. Methods: Medical records of the drug users who attended to our psychiatry clinics between April 2010 and April 2011 were reviewed and 55 non-injecting drug users without a previous history of intravenous drug use were identified. Anti-HIV, anti-HCV, HBs-Ag and VDRL assay results have been extracted and seroprevalence rates were calculated. Results: All but one NIDUs were male (n=54; 98. 2%); 28 (50.9%) were between 15 and 25 years of age. Serologically, only one patient (a heroin user) was tested positive for HBsAg (1.81%) and one patient (a heroin user) was anti-HCV positive. None of the patients screened for anti-HIV or VDRL were tested positive. Conclusions: This study found low seropositivity rates for HBV, HBC, HIV and VDRL among a group of NIDUs, which might be related to the cultural characteristics of the region. [Anadolu Psikiyatri Derg 2015; 16(1.000): 65-68]