Abstract
Studies of the HIV risks of crack-cocaine using women have focused on those living in the inner city, urban areas of the country. However, reports indicate that the rates of syphilis and HIV infection have shown greater increases in rural areas than in urban ones. This paper reports the findings of a comparative study of 60 female crack-cocaine users, 25 from rural southeast Georgia and 35 from Miami, Florida, to determine their drug using and sexual practices, as well as their knowledge about AIDS and HIV transmission. Their patterns of initial and continuous drug use were similar, as were their sexual practices. However, the Miami women were more likely to have had a greater number of sexual partners than the Georgia women. Both groups were knowledgeable about AIDS and the transmission of HIV, yet all participated in activities that put them at high risk for HIV infection and transmission. Some 12 percent of the 60 respondents reported testing positive for HIV. The study suggests that at least within these populations, there are few differences between rural and urban crack using women in terms of their crack use, sexual practices, and potential for HIV infection and transmission.
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Mary Ann Forney is affiliated with the Comprehensive Drug Research Center at the University of Miami School of Medicine. James A. Inciardi is director of the Center for Drug and Alcohol Studies at the University of Delaware and Dorothy Lockwood is an associate scientist with the Center for Drug and Alcohol Studies.
This research was supported by HHS Grant 5-R01-DA04862 and Contract No. 271888248 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
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Forney, M.A., Inciardi, J.A. & Lockwood, D. Exchanging sex for crack-cocaine: A comparison of women from rural and urban communities. J Community Health 17, 73–85 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01321576
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01321576