A multicentre study on the causes of death among Italian injecting drug users. AIDS has overtaken overdose as the principal cause of death. NLM AIDSLINE Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1998. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

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A multicentre study on the causes of death among Italian injecting drug users. AIDS has overtaken overdose as the principal cause of death.

AIDS Care. 1998 Feb;10(1):61-7. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/98197264
Mezzelani P; Quaglio GL; Venturini L; Lugoboni F; Friedman SR; Des Jarlais DC; Institute of Clinica Medica, University of Verona, Italy.; mezzelani@cmib.univr.it

Abstract: The causes of death among injecting drug users. (IDUs) are still being discussed worldwide. We analysed the causes of death among IDUs attending 26 centres for drug users in North-Eastern Italy from 1985 to 1994. The study of a total number of 1,022 deaths reveals the following: (1) AIDS has become the primary cause of death among IDUs since 1991 and is rising even in an area with a moderate HIV seroprevalence; (2) the mean age of death in AIDS patients proved higher than among patients who died of other causes (which may be due to the long incubation period of AIDS); 3) our data do not reveal higher HIV seroprevalence among IDUs who died of overdose and suicide as opposed to IDUs who died of other causes; (4) the mortality rate in IDUs is significantly higher when compared to that of the general population in the same age group.
Keywords: *Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/MORTALITY *Overdose/MORTALITY *Substance Abuse, Intravenous/MORTALITY

KWDacquiredimmunodeficiencysyndrome/mortalityKWDoverdose/mortalityKWDsubstanceabuse,intravenous/mortality
980730
M9871373

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