BioScience Trends. 2017;11(3):282-291. (DOI: 10.5582/bst.2016.01236)

Re-entry and related predictors among HIV-infected clients receiving methadone maintenance treatment in Guangdong province, China.

Luo XF, Gong X, Zhao PZ, Zou X, Chen W, Ling L

This study examined the re-entry characteristics and related predictors among HIV-infected methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) clients in Guangdong, China. Data on HIV-infected MMT clients was obtained from the clinic MMT registration system in Guangdong. Of the 653 participants, only 9.0% remained in the MMT program until the end of the study. For the drop-outs, 70.0% returned to MMT at least once by the end of the study. Re-entry was independently associated with marital status (OR_{never married} = 2.24, 95% CI: 1.02-4.93; OR_{married currently} = 2.34, 95% CI: 1.05-5.22), being unemployed (OR = 1.92, 95% CI: 1.12-3.27), lower positive percentages of urine tests (OR_<40% = 4.08, 95% CI: 2.21-7.54; OR_40%-80% = 2.52, 95% CI: 1.39-4.56), higher maintenance doses (OR = 3.78, 95% CI: 2.21- 7.54) and poorer MMT attendance percentages (OR_<20% = 282.02, 95% CI: 62.75-1268.11; OR_20-49% = 20.75, 95% CI: 10.52-40.93; OR_50-79% = 6.07, 95% CI: 3.44-10.73). A higher re-entry frequency was independently associated with lower education level (OR_{junior high school} = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.26-0.93), average drug use times less than twice (OR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.41- 1.00), lower positive percentages of urine tests (OR = 0.39, 95% CI: 0.22-0.70) and poorer percentages of MMT attendance (OR_<20% = 7.24, 95% CI: 2.99-17.55; OR_20-49% = 14.30, 95% CI: 5.94-34.42; OR_50-79% = 6.15, 95% CI: 2.55-14.85). Re-entry and repeated re-entry were prevalent among HIV-infected MMT clients in Guangdong, underscoring the urgent needs of tailored interventions and health education programs for this population.

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