Drug-Related HIV Risk Behaviors and Cocaine Preference among Injection Drug Users in Los Angeles

Abstract

Based on a 1988–91 sample of 422 drug-using arrestees in Los Angeles, this study compares the drug-related risk behavior of users whose preferred injection drug is cocaine and users with a preference for heroin or no preference between the two drugs. Cocaine preference is unrelated to the likelihood of needle sharing overall, needle sharing with strangers, needle sharing at shooting galleries, and failure to use bleach as a needle disinfectant. In analyses restricted to users who reported needle sharing, the frequency of sharing is no more closely related to heroin injection frequency than to cocaine injection frequency. These results suggest that local preventive education programs do not need to address distinctive patterns of drug-related risk behavior among injection cocaine users and injection heroin users in Los Angeles.