HIV Prevalence and Correlates of Needle Sharing Behavior Among people who inject drugs in 10 sentinel provines in Vietnam

People who inject drugs (PWID) are among populations at greatest risk for HIV infection primarily via the sharing of contaminated needles and syringes. In Vietnam, injecting drug use is the major driving force of the HIV epidemic, and HIV infection is predominantly transmitted among PWID through needle sharing. This study was based on the ‘2009 HIV/STI Integrated Biological and Behavioral Surveillance's study to examine the correlates of needle sharing behavior among male residents of Vietnam who inject drugs. Data collected from 3,037 male PWID across 10 provinces in Vietnam were analyzed using descriptive statistics, bivariate, and multivariate logistic regression analysis. The mean age of PWID was 30.5 years (SD= ± 8.4 years) with a mean duration of injection of 5.8 years. Nine hundred and thirty PWID were HIV positive with the pooled HIV prevalence of 30.6% (95% CI 29.0%-32.3%). HIV prevalence among PWID varied widely across the 10 study provinces, ranging from 1.0% (95% CI 0.0%-2.2%) (n=3) in Da Nang to 55.7% (95% CI 50.0%-61.3%) (n=167) in Quang Ninh province. Lifetime needle sharing was reported by 46% (n=1,399) of the participants. Factors independently associated with lifetime needle sharing included sharing of drugs/drug mixing equipment, injection at a shooting gallery, duration of injection, lack of access to needles/syringes, having sexual partners who injected drugs, mobility, and self-perception of HIV risk. This study underscores the need for focused HIV prevention interventions to discourage needle sharing among PWID in Vietnam.