The Kirby Institute, UNSW, May 2017 The Australian Needle and Syringe Program Survey (ANSPS) provides serial point prevalence estimates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibodies and sexual and injecting risk behaviour among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Australia. Conducted annually over a one-two week period in October, all clients attending participating...
STI rates in PrEP users very high, but evidence that PrEP increases them is inconclusive
nam/aidsmap, Published: 22 February 2017 A study of PrEP users presented last week showed that PrEP users had very high rates of STI diagnosis – in the order of 20 times higher than among HIV-negative gay men in the general population. The evidence that STIs increased further while people were on PrEP was, however, a lot more ambiguous. The problem in proving that PrEP has any causal relationship...
Methamphetamine use in Adelaide climbs as SA calls for action on drug ‘scourge’
ABC news, 25.01.2017
Methamphetamine use in Adelaide rose 25 per cent in the past year and tripled over five years, an analysis of the city’s sewage has shown.
Read more here
Key findings from the 2016 IDRS: A survey of people who inject drugs
NDARC/UNSW, 10/10/2016 The Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS) monitors emerging trends in the use, price, purity and availability of heroin, methamphetamine (speed powder, base and crystal), cocaine and cannabis. In addition to a survey of people who inject drugs (PWID), the annual data collection also includes a survey of key experts (KE) who are professionals in the field of illicit drugs and...
Flux study first report: drug use among gay men and bisexual men
Kirby Institute, May 2016 The Flux Study, a study of drug use (and non-use) among gay and bisexual men, has recently released its first annual report. Flux is a cohort study of 2251 men, including over 1700 who are being followed at 6-monthly intervals. It identifies: risk factors, prevalence, incidence, and associated harms of drug use; the role of gay community norms in individuals’...
Victorian heroin overdose deaths spike, average age of victims rises
ABC The World Today, Posted 18/4/2016
The number of heroin deaths in Victoria rose by almost 20 per cent in 2015, but it is an older generation who are dying.
Victoria Police and the State Coroner will be investigating whether increased purity was responsible for the jump in overdoses.
Read more here