OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to better understand the relationship of substance abuse to higher rates of transmission of hepatitis C among persons with severe mental illness. METHOD: S: The authors assessed 668 persons with severe mental illness for HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C infection through venipuncture. Demographic characteristics, substance abuse, and risk behaviors for blood-borne infections were assessed through interviews and collection of clinical data. RESULTS: Eighty-two percent of the assessed persons were not infected, and 18 percent had hepatitis C. Among those with hepatitis C infection, 546 (82 percent) tested negative for all viruses. Of the 122 (18 percent) who had hepatitis C, 53 (8 percent) had only hepatitis C, 56 (8 percent) had both hepatitis C and hepatitis B, three (1 percent) had hepatitis C and HIV, and ten (2 percent) had all three infections. More than 20 percent of the sample reported lifetime intravenous drug use, and 14 percent reported lifetime needle sharing. Fifty-seven percent had sniffed of snorted cocaine, and 39 percent had smoked crack. A stepwise regression model was used to identify interaction effects of these behaviors and risk of hepatitis C infection among persons with severe mental illness. Use of needles and of crack cocaine were associated with a large increase in the likelihood of hepatitis C infection. CONCLUSION: S: The high rates of co-occurring substance use disorders among persons with severe mental illness, coupled with the role of substance abuse as the primary vector for hepatitis C transmission, warrants special consideration.
OBJECTIVES: The authors sought to better understand the relationship of substance abuse to higher rates of transmission of hepatitis C among persons with severe mental illness. METHOD: S: The authors assessed 668 persons with severe mental illness for HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C infection through venipuncture. Demographic characteristics, substance abuse, and risk behaviors for blood-borne infections were assessed through interviews and collection of clinical data. RESULTS: Eighty-two percent of the assessed persons were not infected, and 18 percent had hepatitis C. Among those with hepatitis C infection, 546 (82 percent) tested negative for all viruses. Of the 122 (18 percent) who had hepatitis C, 53 (8 percent) had only hepatitis C, 56 (8 percent) had both hepatitis C and hepatitis B, three (1 percent) had hepatitis C and HIV, and ten (2 percent) had all three infections. More than 20 percent of the sample reported lifetime intravenous drug use, and 14 percent reported lifetime needle sharing. Fifty-seven percent had sniffed of snorted cocaine, and 39 percent had smoked crack. A stepwise regression model was used to identify interaction effects of these behaviors and risk of hepatitis C infection among persons with severe mental illness. Use of needles and of crack cocaine were associated with a large increase in the likelihood of hepatitis C infection. CONCLUSION: S: The high rates of co-occurring substance use disorders among persons with severe mental illness, coupled with the role of substance abuse as the primary vector for hepatitis C transmission, warrants special consideration.
Authors: Seth Himelhoch; John F McCarthy; Dara Ganoczy; Deborah Medoff; Amy Kilbourne; Richard Goldberg; Lisa Dixon; Frederic C Blow Journal: Psychosomatics Date: 2009 Jan-Feb Impact factor: 2.386
Authors: Seth Himelhoch; Richard Goldberg; Christine Calmes; Deborah Medoff; Eric Slade; Lisa Dixon; Gerard Gallucci; Stanley Rosenberg Journal: J Community Psychol Date: 2011-02-02
Authors: Diana L Sylvestre; Jennifer M Loftis; Peter Hauser; Sander Genser; Helen Cesari; Nicolette Borek; Thomas F Kresina; Leonard Seeff; Henry Francis Journal: J Urban Health Date: 2004-12 Impact factor: 3.671