Prevalence of HIV in Russia Related to Injection Drug Use

"The Russian Federation borders on a generalised epidemic with a population prevalence of 1.0% (95% CI 0.9% to 1.2%).² Official registration data from 2010 indicated over 38 000 prevalent cases in Moscow,³ the largest city of the Federation and the political and economic hub. The continued rise of HIV parallels the increase in sexually transmitted infections (STIs), most notably syphilis and Chlamydia, in the years following the fall of the Soviet Union,^{4 5} which subsequently stabilised to approximately 78.5 and 100.8 per 100 000, respectively, by 2004.⁶
"Russia’s epidemic is largely concentrated among vulnerable populations.^{2 7} Injection drug use (IDU), responsible for over half of all new infections, has been considered the primary driver.⁸ Sexual transmission is increasingly common and contributes approximately one-third of new HIV cases.^{8 9}