Drug Abuse and HIV/AIDS

Research Findings from February, 1998 Director's Report

This section lists selected summaries from NIDA funded research projects that investigate youth drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. The summaries provided were selected from recent issues of the Director's Report to the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse. For a more comprehensive listing of NIDA funded projects see the Director's Report.

Adolescent Conduct Disorder Predictive of HIV Risk Taking Behaviors

A study was conducted to assess the prevalence of conduct disorder among runaway and homeless adolescents and to investigate associations between conduct disorder and HIV risk behaviors. The Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children and a standardized HIV risk assessment questionnaire were administered to 219 runaway and homeless adolescents recruited from a drop-in center serving high risk youth. One half of the males and 60% of the females were diagnosed with conduct disorder. In multivariate analyses, conduct disorder was the strongest predictor of lifetime use of heroin and/or cocaine and exchanging sex for money, drugs, food or shelter, as well as the number of drugs used and the number of sex partners in the last 3 months. The high rate of conduct disorder in this population, and the association between conduct disorder and both drug and sex-related HIV risk behaviors, indicate a need for interventions that consider the influence of psychiatric diagnosis on high risk behaviors. Booth, R.E. and Zhang, Y. Conduct Disorder and HIV Risk Behaviors among Runaway and Homeless Adolescents. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 48: pp. 69-76, 1997.

Behavioral Change in HIV+ Adolescents

This study examined whether HIV+ adolescents (N=102) linked to care then change risk and health-related behaviors subsequent to learning their HIV serostatus, and to document the stability of their current behavior patterns over a 6-month period. Over their lifetime, youths engaged in unprotected sexual acts with multiple partners (M=284; median=44; consistent condom protection, 5%) and substance use (21% injecting drug use; 68% hard drugs). When current risk behaviors were assessed twice over two consecutive 3-month periods, almost one third had been sexually abstinent. Among youths who were currently sexually active, most had multiple sexual partners (M=5.7, time 1; 4.9, time 2) and used condoms (72-77% sexual acts protected); most of the youths (63-64%) always used condoms. Use of alcohol (63%), marijuana (41%), hard drugs (36%), and injecting drugs (12%) was substantial. There were gender difference among sexual behavior (females had fewer sexual partners) and substance use behavior (fewer females injected drugs or shared needles). Youths were relatively healthy (M T cells=521.4; 14% T cells < 200; 1.9 diseases and 3.7 physical symptoms in the previous 3 months). There was an exceptionally high rate of adherence, about 66% for appointment over 3-6 months. Rotheram-Borus M.J., Murphy D.A., Coleman C.L., Kennedy M., Reid H.M., Cline T.R., Birnbaum J.M., Futterman D., Levin L., Schneir A., Chabon B., O'Keefe Z., & Kipke M. Risk Acts, Health Care, and Medical Adherence among HIV+ Youths in Care Over Time. AIDS and Behavior, 1, pp. 43-51, 1997.