[Sex differences concerning the habit patterns and health among intravenous heroin addicts in Oslo]

The issue addressed below concerns sex differences in consumption patterns and ways of financing the drug habit among intravenous heroin users. The findings are linked to recorded differences in various health indicators. The article is based on data collected through 1,840 interviews with heroin abusers who contacted the "Needle-Exchange Bus" in Oslo during the years 1993-97. Analysis indicates the existence of substantial differences between women and men along a number of variables. Women report injecting more frequently than men and using on average more heroin per injection. Women also finance their drug habit differently, as more than half of them report some income from prostitution. The finding may seem paradoxical as women also appear to have a lower risk of dying from an overdose/poisoning and a lower risk of contracting hepatitis A and B than male injecting misusers. The risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, on the other hand, appears to be greater among female injectors.