Substance use, self-rated health and HIV status in Brazil

Alcohol use disorder in people with infectious and chronic diseases and mental disorders: Brazil, 2015

The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of alcohol use disorder (AUD) and associated factors in Brazilian adults that reported chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), mental disorders (MDs), and infectious diseases (IDs). This was a secondary analysis of the 3rd National Survey on Drug Use by the Brazilian Population in which the principal outcome was presence of AUD. Prevalence of AUD was estimated for three subgroups: individuals that reported NCDs, MDs, and IDs. Factors associated with AUD in each group were analyzed using logistic regression models. Of the 15,645 adults interviewed, 30.5% (95%CI: 29.4-31.5) reported NCDs, 17.6% (95%CI: 16.5-18.7) MDs, and 1.6% (95%CI: 1.2-1.9) IDs. Considering comorbidities, the analytical sample was 6,612. No statistically significant difference was found in the prevalence of AUD between individuals with NCDs (7.5% [95%CI: 6.1- 8.7]), MDs (8.4% [95%CI: 6.7-10.2]), and IDs (12.4% [95%CI: 7.0-17.8]). The main factors associated with AUD in all the groups were male sex and young adult age. Considering the high prevalence of AUD in all the groups, systematic screening of AUD is necessary in health services that treat NCDs, MDs, and IDs.

Self-rated health and quality of life in female sex workers with substance use disorders in Tehran, Iran

BACKGROUND

While self-rated health (SRH) and quality of life (QoL) has been associated with substance use disorders (SUDs) in sex-working populations, little is known about this association in Iran. This study aimed to assess QoL and SRH in Iranian female sex workers (FSWs) in Tehran.

METHOD

FSWs were recruited using convenience sampling methods from substance abuse treatment centers in Tehran that exclusively provided services for women. Participants completed an interviewer-administered demographic questionnaire in Persian and the Iranian version of the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36). Descriptive analyses, means and standard deviations; frequency and percentages, t-test and one-way ANOVA, and Chi-square tests were utilized to analyze the data.

RESULTS

The mean age among 161 participants clinically diagnosed with SUD was 34.09 years (SD 7.97; range: 18-57). The total mean QoL score was 41.03 (SD: 12.92). The highest and lowest mean scores were observed in the physical functioning (52.23) and role emotional (26.64) dimensions, respectively. Significant differences (p < 0.05) in QoL were observed according to education and marital status, and the average QoL score was lower in women who reported permanent marriages and women who were illiterate. The average score of QoL was significantly higher in employed women. Overall, 51.6% of the women rated their health as sub-optimal, with divorced participants and women who were illiterate more likely to rate their health as sub-optimal (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Results emphasize the need for mental, physical, and sexual health screening and gender-specific interventions to improve QoL in this population. Further investigation may elucidate the consequences of poor SRH and QoL on SUD treatment adherence, sexual risk behavior, and morbidity and mortality in FSWs.

Would the Brazilian population support the alcohol policies recommended by the World Health Organization?

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the support of the Brazilian population to the alcohol-policies proposed by the World Health Organization to decrease alcohol harm (specifically: to decrease alcohol availability and advertising, and to increase pricing). In addition, we evaluated the factors associated with being against those policies.

METHODS

Data from 16,273 Brazilians, aged 12-65 years, interviewed in the 3rd Brazilian Household Survey on Substance Use (BHSU-3) were analyzed. The BHSU-3 is a nationwide, probability survey conducted in 2015. Individuals were asked if they would be against, neutral, or in favor of seven alcohol policies grouped as: 1) Strengthen restrictions on alcohol availability; 2) Enforce bans or restrictions on alcohol advertising, sponsorship, and promotion; and 3) Raise prices on alcohol through excise taxes and pricing. Generalized linear models were fitted to evaluate factors associated with being against each one of those policies and against all of policies.

RESULTS

Overall, 28% of the Brazilians supported all the above mentioned policies, whereas 16% were against them. The highest rate of approval refers to restricting advertising (53%), the lowest refers to increasing prices (40%). Factors associated with being against all policies were: being male (AOR = 1.1; 95%CI: 1.0-1.3), not having a religion (AOR = 1.4; 95%CI: 1.1-1.8), being catholic (AOR = 1.3; 95%CI: 1.1-1.5), and alcohol dependence (AOR = 1.6; 95%CI: 1.1-2.4).

CONCLUSIONS

The Brazilian government could count on the support of most of the population to restrict alcohol advertising. This information is essential to tackle the lobby of the alcohol industry and its clever marketing strategy.

HIV and Substance Use in Latin America: A Scoping Review

This scoping review aims to explore the interplay between substance use (SU) and HIV in Latin America (LA). Database searches yielded 3481 references; 196 were included. HIV prevalence among people who used substances (PWUS) ranged from 2.8–15.2%. SU definitions were variable throughout studies, and thus data were not easily comparable. In 2019, only 2% of new HIV infections were attributed to injection drug use (IDU) in LA. Factors associated with HIV among PWUS included being female, IDU and homelessness, and PWUS were likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors, start antiretroviral treatment late, have poor adherence, have treatment failure, be lost to follow-up, have comorbidities, and experience higher mortality rates and lower quality of life, as has been reported in PLWH with SU in other regions. Five intervention studies were identified, and only one was effective at reducing HIV incidence in PWUS. Interventions in other regions have varying success depending on context-specific characteristics, highlighting the need to conduct more research in the LA region. Though progress has been made in establishing SU as a major concern in people living with HIV (PLWH), much more is yet to be done to reduce the burden of HIV and SU in LA.

Underage drinking in Brazil: findings from a community household survey

Objectives:

Previous studies have estimated the 30-day prevalence of alcohol use to be approximately 21% among youth in Brazil, despite the legal drinking age of 18 years. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of underage drinking and its associated factors among adolescents in Brazil.

Methods:

The 3rd National Survey on Drug Use by the Brazilian Population (III Levantamento Nacional sobre o Uso de Drogas pela População Brasileira) is a nationwide, multi-stage, probability-sample household survey. Herein, youth between the ages of 12-17 years were included. Lifetime and 12-month alcohol use prevalence were estimated. Factors associated with 12-month alcohol use were evaluated through multivariate analysis considering survey weights and design.

Results:

Overall, 628 youth were interviewed. Estimated lifetime and 12-month alcohol use were 34.3% (standard error [SE] = 1.9) and 22.2% (SE = 1.7), respectively. Factors associated with 12-month drinking were: other/no religion vs. Christianity; living in rural vs. urban areas; self-reported diagnosis of depression vs. no self-reported depression; lifetime tobacco use vs. no history of tobacco use; and any illicit drug use vs. no history of illicit drug use.

Conclusion:

Considering that alcohol use is a major risk factor for early death among Brazilian youth, our findings highlight the importance of preventative measures to reduce underage drinking.