Gonorrhea among drug users: an Alaskan versus a national sample

The study described here investigates the replicability of gender-specific risk profiles for gonorrhea based on an Alaskan sample compared to a U.S. national sample of drug users at risk for HIV infection. The Alaska sample (interviewed at a field station in Anchorage, Alaska; N=1,049) and the national sample (interviewed at 18 sites other than Alaska; N=17,619) consisted of cocaine smokers and injection drug users not in drug treatment. A history of gonorrhea infection was self-reported and coded as ever or never. The Anchorage and national risk profile for men included the following factors: (a) history of intranasal or parenteral cocaine use, (b) being black versus nonblack, (c) being older, (d) income from illegal activity, and (e) history of amphetamine use. The Anchorage and national risk profiles for women included the following factors: (a) trading sex for money, (b) being Native American versus non-Native American, and (c) trading sex for drugs. The Anchorage model for women included perceived homelessness as a factor, but it was not retained in the national model. The extent of the replicability of these models illustrates the generalizability of Alaskan findings to other U.S. drug-using populations. The authors also discuss the implications of these findings for disease prevention.