The role of syringe sharing in the spread of HIV/AIDS among injectable
drug users
Abstract
Containment syringe sharing among individuals is considered to be the
most contributing factor to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It’s
well recognized that sharing syringes significantly contributes to the
transmission of diseases amongst individuals. This study examines how
syringe sharing may contribute to HIV infection and spread among
injectable drug users. Sharing syringes greatly aids in the spread of
infections among people, as is widely acknowledged. The model was
calibrated using data from Malaysia from 2000 to 2011 on the incidence
of HIV among drug injectors. Through the use of the Markov chain Monte
Carlo simulation approach, the parameters are estimated using Bayesian
inference. The basic reproduction number for HIV disease suggests that
the disease-free equilibrium was stable during the 12 years. This is a
good indicator from the public health point of view since the goal is to
stabilize the infection rate. Our findings emphasized the potential
involvement of syringe sharing in the transmission of HIV among
injectable drug users and the need for more research into this infection
rate in order to improve strategies for reducing the incidence of
individual HIV cases among people who inject drugs.