Psychopathology, stress and HIV-risk injecting behaviour among drug users

The relations between psychopathology (or psychological morbidity) and stress (measured by the GHQ-30 and VOEG-13) and HIV-risk injecting behaviour were investigated among 151 and 166 drug users, respectively, participating in a HIV study in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Scores indicative of psychopathology were obtained by 72% of respondents. Drug users with psychopathology are older, long-term polydrug users and injectors, who experience considerable stress. Drug users in the sample also have higher stress levels than the general population, but, in contrast to the general population, stress does not increase with age. Stress is associated with long-term polydrug use, with cocaine use and with the female sex. Among HIV-positive injecting drug users (IDU's) no positive relation was found between psychopathology or stress and lending of used needles to others. Among HIV-negative IDUs only psychopathology is associated with an increased HIV risk. Our findings suggest that HIV-risk reduction programmes should consider more seriously the role of psychopathology in attempts to persuade drug users to reduce their risks.