|
Adolescent arrest history influences risk of acquiring HIV
November 15, 2006Substance abuse and sexual behavior contribute to increased risk
Providence, RI - Adolescents with a history of arrest are at greater risk for HIV infection than adolescents with no arrest history, according to a new study published in the November issue of Drug and Alcohol Dependence. Researchers from the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and Brown Medical School attribute higher rates of substance abuse, sexual risk behaviors and mental health issues to the increased risk of infection.
Study participants included adolescents ages 15 to 21 who were categorized into two groups - arrestees and non-arrestees. Researchers at sites in Rhode Island, Georgia and Florida assessed both groups of adolescents in terms of their alcohol and drug use, substance abuse during sex, unprotected sex acts, sexually transmitted infection diagnoses, attitudes about substance use and unprotected sex, suicide attempts and psychiatric hospitalizations.
"We found that adolescents with a history of arrest were significantly more likely to use alcohol and drugs, engage in unprotected sex acts, use a substance during sex and have significant mental health histories than adolescents without a history of arrest," says lead author Marina Tolou-Shams, PhD, staff psychologist at the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and assistant professor (research) at Brown Medical School.
This study was unique because it categorized participants based upon their history of arrest regardless of the severity of their offense. "Prior research has demonstrated that incarcerated or detained youth have higher rates of mental health problems, substance use and sexual risk-taking behaviors that significantly increase their risk of contracting HIV. Our findings extend the prior research to suggest that any type of arrest history, not necessarily one that results in incarceration or detention, can serve as a marker for sexual risk, substance abuse and a history of mental health difficulties."
In addition, researchers found that attitudes about substance abuse and unprotected sex also differed between the two groups of participants. Adolescents with a history of arrest viewed unprotected sex and using drugs during sex more favorably than those who had not been arrested. "Understanding risk attitudes in this population can help to inform the development of HIV prevention interventions for juvenile justice youth thereby potentially altering the interventions' impact," says Tolou-Shams.
The researchers note that the results of this study could have important public health implications for the best time to identify adolescents considered at risk for HIV.
"The time of arrest provides a window of opportunity to identify adolescents at risk for HIV," says Tolou-Shams. " By addressing substance abuse and other risk factors upon their first contact with the justice system and providing resources to help change their attitudes toward risky behavior-their chances of contracting HIV could be reduced considerably."
Lifespan
"We found that adolescents with a history of arrest were significantly more likely to use alcohol and drugs, engage in unprotected sex acts, use a substance during sex and have significant mental health histories than adolescents without a history of arrest," says lead author Marina Tolou-Shams, PhD, staff psychologist at the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and assistant professor (research) at Brown Medical School.
This study was unique because it categorized participants based upon their history of arrest regardless of the severity of their offense. "Prior research has demonstrated that incarcerated or detained youth have higher rates of mental health problems, substance use and sexual risk-taking behaviors that significantly increase their risk of contracting HIV. Our findings extend the prior research to suggest that any type of arrest history, not necessarily one that results in incarceration or detention, can serve as a marker for sexual risk, substance abuse and a history of mental health difficulties."
In addition, researchers found that attitudes about substance abuse and unprotected sex also differed between the two groups of participants. Adolescents with a history of arrest viewed unprotected sex and using drugs during sex more favorably than those who had not been arrested. "Understanding risk attitudes in this population can help to inform the development of HIV prevention interventions for juvenile justice youth thereby potentially altering the interventions' impact," says Tolou-Shams.
The researchers note that the results of this study could have important public health implications for the best time to identify adolescents considered at risk for HIV.
"The time of arrest provides a window of opportunity to identify adolescents at risk for HIV," says Tolou-Shams. " By addressing substance abuse and other risk factors upon their first contact with the justice system and providing resources to help change their attitudes toward risky behavior-their chances of contracting HIV could be reduced considerably."
Lifespan
HIV News and Current HIV Events RSSAsthma risk increases in children treated for HIV
Children whose immune systems rebound after treatment with potent anti-viral drugs for HIV infection face an increased risk of developing asthma, said a federally funded consortium of researchers led by those from Baylor College of Medicine in a report that appears online in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
New paper offers insights into 'blinking' phenomena
A new paper by a team of researchers led by University of Notre Dame physicist Bolizsár Jankó provides an overview of research into one of the few remaining unsolved problems of quantum mechanics.
Zinc finger proteins put personalized HIV therapy within reach
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and collaborators are using minute, naturally occurring proteins called zinc fingers to engineer T cells to one day treat AIDS in humans.
What works to prevent HIV among heterosexual African-Americans?
Behavioral HIV prevention interventions targeting heterosexual African Americans that are proven to work require several key characteristics, according to UCSF researchers.
Doubling of sexually transmitted infections among over-45s in under a decade
Rates of sexually transmitted infections have doubled among the over 45s in less than a decade, reveals research published ahead of print in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections.
State policies influence drug treatment programs
State policies have a significant impact on the services performed by substance abuse treatment programs, and could play a key role in efforts to expand the use of research-based "comprehensive" treatment approaches, reports a study in the June issue of the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment (JSAT).
Psychosocial issues affect HIV/AIDS treatment outcomes: UNC researcher
Psychosocial influences such as stress, depression and trauma have been neglected in biomedical and treatment studies involving people infected with HIV, yet they are now known to have significant health impacts on such individuals and the spread of AIDS, according to a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientist.
New study shows potential to treat or prevent viral cancers
A new study, presented at the SNM 55th Annual Meeting, shows that radioimmunotherapy (RIT) targeting viral antigens offers a novel option to treat-or even prevent-many viral cancers by targeting cancer cells expressing viral antigens or infected cells before they convert into malignancy.
Every patient is unique: Individualized therapies for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Positron emission tomography (PET) could be an important tool for identifying non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients who are likely to respond well to treatment with 90 ibritumomab tiuxetan (IT)-the first radioimmunotherapy treatment approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said researchers at SNM's 55th Annual Meeting.
Radical reform is needed to stop the 'inhumane' practice of transplant tourism
The UK government must bring in presumed consent to organ donation or allow a controlled donor compensation programme for unrelated live donors, in order to bring the "inhumane" practice of transplant tourism from the UK to an end, claims a doctor in this week's BMJ.
More HIV News Articles
| © 2008 BrightSurf.com |