To browse Academia. HIV research in Vietnam has focused primarily on its large heroin injector population. Data on men who have sex with men [MSM], particularly the large and growing population of men who exchange sex for money or other material rewards, male sex workers [MSWs], is very limited.
Assessments included demographic characteristics, substance use, sexual risk, and use of health services. Both tobacco and alcohol are initiated at a young age and most participants currently use both substances overall across all three cities. While alcohol and tobacco use precede the initiation of sex work, stimulant and opiate use are initiated following the initiation of sex work. There was substant Aims To describe the drug use practices among female sex workers FSWs in Hanoi and to identify factors associated with their drug injecting.
Participating FSWs were both establishment- and street-based , who were practising in seven urban and one suburban districts of Hanoi. Measurements Subjects were interviewed face to face using a structured questionnaire.
Cleaning of injecting equipment was not common among those who shared. Having drug-injecting 'love mates', drug-using clients, longer residence in Hanoi, more clients and not currently cohabiting were found to be independently associated with drug injecting among FSWs.
Conclusions The high prevalence of injecting drug use among FSWs makes them susceptible to HIV infection, and is a threat to their clients. There is a strong relationship between drug-using FSWs and male drug-using clients and non-client partners. Intervention to prevent drug use initiation among nondrug-using FSWs and harm reduction among drug-using FSWs are urgently needed. To examine the causes of a rapid increase of HIV infection among female sex workers FSWs in Hanoi, Viet Nam, a qualitative study of sex workers was conducted there in June to study their risk characteristics, their relationships with drug users, and to identify potential factors playing a role in the recent rise of HIV.
