Meghalaya AIDS Control Society (MACS) has mapped as many as eight districts of the state and found that around 3100 drug users are affected with HIV/AIDS.
With an aim to contain HIV transmission due to injecting drug use (IDU), efforts are made to adopt Opioid substitution therapy (OST). Principal Secretary, Social Welfare Department, Sampath Kumar while bringing more light into it said, this mechanism will restrain the spread of HIV/AIDS and this has proved significant as the number of Intravenous drug users (IVDU) has significantly come down.
“There is a mapping by the Meghalaya AIDS control society, so the mapping was done in eight districts with about 3100 odd numbers who are using the Intravenous drugs. So for that there is a mechanism as how that will not spread, like they will not use the same injection, and also providing Opioid substitution therapy (OST) so that they could get into the oral intake and slowly they are coming down,” Kumar said.
“In fact a very significant number has come down,” he added.
Opioid substitution therapy (OST) is an evidence-based intervention for opiate-dependent persons that replaces illicit drug use with medically prescribed, orally administered opiates. OST reduces HIV risk behaviors and harms associated with injecting opioids.