History of being in government care associated with younger age at injection initiation among a cohort of street-involved youth.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction and aims

Compared to the general population of youth, health-related disparities experienced by youth exposed to the child welfare system are well documented. Amongst these vulnerabilities are elevated rates of substance use, including injection drug use; however, less is known about when these youth transition to this high-risk behaviour. We sought to assess whether having a history of government care is associated with initiating injection drug use before age 18.

Design and methods

Between September 2005 and May 2014, data were derived from the At-Risk Youth Study, a cohort of street-involved youth who use illicit drugs in Vancouver, Canada. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was employed to examine the relationship between early initiation of injectio

SUBMITTER: Barker B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5591036 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature