ArticlePloS one2021
Prevalence and correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity among people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region.
Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers.
What it found
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Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 61 citations in OpenAlex.
- A mixed methods evaluation of a motivational enhancement intervention to increase SARS-CoV-2 testing among people experiencing houselessness and people who inject drugs.Psychological services · 2025Trial
- Preliminary Efficacy of a Theory-Informed Intervention to Increase COVID-19 Testing Uptake Among People Who Inject Drugs in San Diego County: Findings From a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2023Trial
- Multilevel drivers and constraints of shifts from injecting to smoking opioids and stimulants: A qualitative study from the San Diego-Tijuana border region.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2026Article
- The changing contribution of fentanyl use to non-fatal overdose among a cohort of people who inject drugs in San Diego, California: A longitudinal assessment.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2026Article
- Article
- A qualitative exploration of the downstream impact of a sustained disruption to the methadone supply in Mexico: effects on the mental, financial, and social health of patients with opioid use disorder in Tijuana.Lancet regional health. Americas · 2025Article
- Modeling the impact of changing drug markets and structural determinants on HCV and/or HIV transmission among people who inject drugs in the United States: A rural and urban comparison.The International journal on drug policy · 2025Article
- Linkage to hepatitis C virus care in a binational cohort study of People who inject drugs on the U.S.-Mexico border.The International journal on drug policy · 2025Article
- Prevalence and Factors Associated With Sexually Transmitted Infections Among People who Inject Drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana Border Region.Open forum infectious diseases · 2025Article
- HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis programmatic preferences among people who inject drugs: findings from a discrete choice experiment.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2024Article
- Safe Injection Self-Efficacy is Associated with HCV and HIV Seropositivity Among People Who Inject Drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana Border Region.AIDS and behavior · 2024Article
- A mixed methods study to inform fatal overdose prevention in San Diego, California: Perspectives from people who use drugs.The International journal on drug policy · 2024Article
- COVID-19 vaccine implementation at a syringe services program: experiences of frontline staff.BMC health services research · 2024Article
- Illicit Fentanyl Use and Hepatitis C Virus Seroconversion Among People Who Inject Drugs in Tijuana and San Diego: Results From a Binational Cohort Study.Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 2024Article
- Modeling the impact of a supervised consumption site on HIV and HCV transmission among people who inject drugs in three counties in California, USA.The International journal on drug policy · 2024Article
- Article
- Water, sanitation and hygiene insecurity predict abscess incidence among people who inject drugs in a binational US-Mexico metropolitan area: A longitudinal cohort study.The International journal on drug policy · 2024Article
- Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 and humoral immune responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines among people who use drugs - in the light of tailored mitigating strategies.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- Changes in injecting versus smoking heroin, fentanyl, and methamphetamine among people who inject drugs in San Diego, California, 2020-2023.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2024Article
- Colocating Syringe Services, COVID-19 Vaccination, And Infectious Disease Testing: Baltimore's Experience.Health affairs (Project Hope) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPeople who inject drugs may be at elevated SARS-CoV-2 risk due to their living conditions and/or exposures when seeking or using drugs. No study to date has reported upon risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection among people who inject drugs. METHODS AND
findingsBetween October, 2020 and June, 2021, participants aged ≥18 years from San Diego, California, USA and Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico who injected drugs within the last month underwent interviews and testing for SARS-CoV-2 RNA and antibodies. Binomial regressions identified correlates of SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity.
resultsOf 386 participants, SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence was 36.3% (95% CI: 31.5%-41.1%); 92.1% had detectable IgM antibodies. Only 37.5% had previously been tested. Seroprevalence did not differ by country of residence. None tested RNA-positive. Most (89.5%) reported engaging in ≥1 protective behavior [e.g., facemasks (73.5%), social distancing (46.5%), or increasing handwashing/sanitizers (22.8%)]. In a multivariate model controlling for sex, older age, and Hispanic/Latinx/Mexican ethnicity were independently associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity, as was engaging in sex work (AdjRR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.18-2.27) and having been incarcerated in the past six months (AdjRR: 1.49; 95% CI: 0.97-2.27). Comorbidities and substance using behaviors were not associated with SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity.
conclusionsIn this community-based study of people who inject drugs in the San Diego-Tijuana border region, over one third were SARS-CoV-2 seropositive, exceeding estimates from the general population in either city. We found no evidence that substance use behaviors were associated with an elevated risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, but observed that circumstances in the risk environment, notably sex work and incarceration, were independently associated with higher SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence. Our findings suggest that a binational policy response to COVID-19 mitigation is warranted beyond the closure of the U.S.-Mexico border. Furthermore, decriminalizing sex work and drug use could reduce the burden of COVID-19 among people who inject drugs.
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