Marseille 2007
| Abstract #430 - Crack Use Careers and Effects of Brief HIV Interventions Overtime for African American Women | ||||
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Session: 41.6: Drugs Alcohol and Potions (Parallel) on Tuesday @ 16.30-18.30 in 3 Chaired by Jeffrey Weiss, Biljana Ristic Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Wendee Wechsberg - RTI International, United States |
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| Additional Authors: Dr Rhonda Karg, Dr William Zule, Ms Rachel Middlesteadt-Ellerson, Dr Kyla Kurian, Ms Felicia Brown, | ||||
| Aim: African-American women have a high prevalence of HIV in the Southern region of the US and many have a history of long-term crack-cocaine use. This paper presents the results of unique longitudinal study that follows the crack use careers of African American women who participated in a randomized trial to examine the long-term effects of a brief evidenced-based woman-focused HIV prevention intervention conducted in North Carolina, USA. | ||||
| Method / Issue: A continuation study began re-recruiting the original sample to determine long term outcomes in 2004. Both quantitative and qualitative methods have been used to evaluate the effects of the original randomized trial. The sample of women who have been re-enrolled in the continuation study and completed the baseline assessment to date is 429. A comparison between study one behaviors and study two baseline were conducted and differences were compared between the original randomized groups. In addition, several in-depth interviews (18) were conducted to contextualize the outcomes. | ||||
| Results / Comments: Preliminary analyses reports that 26% reported attaining more education and 26% reported no crack use, but all groups were using crack less than their original baseline but had increased since their last follow up, 28% reported no drinking in the past month, and 11% were in treatment. Thirty-two percent reported having been incarcerated since the previous study. Although women reported differences in protected sex by group conditions and partners, rates of unprotected sex remained high in all three groups but the woman-focused group reported only slightly less unprotected sex with a steady partner (77%) then the standard group (78%) but greater differences with trading partners (43% unprotected in womens group and 55% unprotected in standard). In-depth interviews showed periods of recovery, even one as long as two years but often from being incarcerated and being back in neighborhoods where others were using drugs. They commented on knowing friends who have died if HIV, been murdered, overdosed and also their own risk behaviors with men is going to kill them. However, men still dont like condoms, and so under the influence of drugs they just dont care, and go without protection. | ||||
| Discussion: These results are only preliminary, but demonstrate that crack use has become an addiction career phenomenon for many women and that sexual risk continues through different patterns of partner relationships resulting in continued HIV risk. Intervention effects are reduced overtime challenging essentially the need for more frequent HIV prevention boosters and available treatment for crack-using African American women that will target their specific issues. Funded By NIDA RO1 11609. | ||||
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