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Risk factors for shooting gallery use and cessation among intravenous drug users
D D Celentano1, D Vlahov, S Cohn
1Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205.
Background:
Shooting galleries, locations where intravenous drug users (IVDUs) can rent or borrow needles and syringes, are a high-risk environment for HIV-1 transmission. This study investigates risk factors for lifetime attendance at shooting galleries and differentiates characteristics of those who continue to frequent shooting galleries and those who have stopped.
Methods:
We interviewed 2615 active IVDUs in Baltimore in 1988 and 1989 and determined patterns of IV drug use, sociodemographics, and HIV-1 serostatus as related to persistence vs cessation of shooting gallery use.
Results:
Over half (52%) of active IVDUs reported ever using a shooting gallery, with 33% reporting use within the prior 3 months. In multivariate analysis, lifetime shooting gallery use was associated with male gender, homosexuality/bisexuality, low socioeconomic status, Black race, and heavier drug involvement. Persistent shooting gallery users were more frequently male, homosexual/bisexual, homeless, less educated, and started IV drug use more recently compared with those who ceased going to shooting galleries.
Conclusions:
Shooting gallery attendance may be pragmatic from a sociological and economic perspective, but it carries with it a heightened risk of acquiring HIV-1 infection.