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Objective: We sought to explore the experiences of drug users in China who were recently diagnosed with HIV infection while engaged in methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) and to better understand their perceptions of MMT, HIV risk, and HIV prevention., Methods: We recruited clients of MMT clinics in Chongqing and Kunming who had a baseline HIV-negative test result upon entry to MMT and had been diagnosed with HIV within the past 12 months. We conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews and thematic data analysis to identify situations and factors that increased HIV risk., Results: Among the 27 participants who were interviewed, 15 believed their infection was due to injection drug use, 7 attributed their infection to sexual contact, and 5 were unsure as to how they became infected. High risk behaviors were common; 18 participants continued to use drugs during treatment, and 10 engaged in unprotected sex. Common themes were the difficulty of drug abstinence despite receiving MMT, social pressure to continue using drugs, and low knowledge of effective HIV prevention measures., Conclusion: While MMT is effective in reducing drug usage and needle sharing, many clients remain at risk of HIV infection due to continued injection drug use and unprotected sex. Clients may benefit from additional counseling on HIV prevention methods as well as structural interventions to increase the availability of clean injection equipment., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.)

Aims: To describe the data collected by the Chinese methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) system and the characteristics of clients entering the programme., Design: Descriptive study using routinely collected data from the MMT data management system for the period March 2004 and March 2010., Setting: All MMT clinics in China., Participants: Clients who enrolled for services between March 2004 and March 2010., Measurements: Routinely collected data included: demographic information; drug use, sexual and criminal behaviours; status of infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and syphilis; random urine-opiate test results; and the daily methadone dose received. Differences among clients by year were examined., Findings: During the period examined, there were 251,974 clients attending 684 clinics in 27 provinces. Overall, the mean age was 34.4 years, 83.8% were male, 70.2% were unemployed, 75% had ever injected drugs, 17% had shared needles and 7.4% were HIV-positive. The profile of clients changed over time, with fewer HIV-positive individuals, fewer injecting drug users, fewer needle-sharers, fewer females and fewer unemployed. Half the clients dropped out within 6 months. The average final dose received was 49.4 mg. The estimated probability of interrupting treatment before 6 months was 52.5%., Conclusions: The profile of clients enrolling in methadone maintenance treatment in China is continually changing and appears to be associated with reduced risk of HIV. High dropout in the programme may limit its effectiveness. The availability of a centralized, real-time data system was extremely useful for monitoring the progress of the Chinese methadone maintenance treatment programme., (© 2014 Society for the Study of Addiction.)

Background: To investigate factors associated with retention among the first cohort of drug users attending methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) clinics in China., Methods: A six-year cohort of 1511 drug users was enrolled in the first 8 MMT clinics in China in 2004 and followed between March, 2004 and December, 2010. Six-year retention rates were calculated and compared by methadone dosage, clinic location, and length of follow-up. Factors associated with retention were evaluated using Cox proportional hazard regression models., Results: The overall retention rate over 6-year was 35.7%. Highest drop-out occurred within the first 12 months of treatment. The retention rates for the 6-year by low (≤ 30 mg/day), medium (31-60 mg/day), and high (>60 mg/day) methadone dosage groups were 20.8%, 34.8% and 53.2%, respectively (p < 0.001). The highest 6-year retention rate among eight clinics was 43.8%, while the lowest one was 17.7% (p < 0.001). The results from Cox proportional hazard models indicate that clients having >30 mg daily methadone dosage (p < 0.001), having relatives receiving MMT (p = 0.027), and having >10% urine morphine positive result (p < 0.001) were more likely to be retained in MMT over the six-year period. It has also found that drug injection (p = 0.005) and needle sharing (p < 0.0001) were significantly associated with better retention., Conclusions: Health workers should adjust individuals' methadone dosages as a method to prevent early treatment termination. Further studies are needed to explore the impact of severity of opiate addiction on long-term retention of MMT clients. Careful assessment of drug users upon MMT enrollment may be helpful for providing additional care to clients., (Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.)

Objective: To assess the overall mortality of methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) clients in China and its associated factors., Methods: A total of 1,511 MMT clients, all of whom enrolled in China's first eight MMT clinics between March and December 2004, were included in this cohort study and followed for approximately six years, until June 2010. Mortality and its predictors were examined using Cox proportional hazards regression models., Results: A total of 154 deaths were observed within 5,391 person-years (PY) of follow-up for an all-cause mortality rate of 28.6 per 1,000 PY. The leading causes of death were drug overdose (33.8%), HIV/AIDS-unrelated disease (21.4%), and HIV/AIDS (16.9%). The all-cause mortality rate of clients engaged in MMT for one year or less was roughly three times that of clients who stayed in MMT for four years or more (14.0 vs. 4.6, p<0.0001), HIV-positive subjects was nearly four times mortality rate than that of HIV-negative individuals (28.1 vs.6.8, p<0.0001). ART-naive HIV-positive subjects had approximately two times higher mortality rate than those receiving ART (31.2 vs. 17.3, <0.0001). After adjusting for confounding variables, we found that being male (HR = 1.63, CI: 1.03-2.57, p = 0.0355) and being HIV-positive (HR = 5.16, CI: 3.70-7.10, p<0.0001) were both associated with higher risk of death whereas increased durations of methadone treatment were associated with a lower risk of death (HR = 0.26, CI: 0.18-0.38, p<0.0001 for two to three years, HR = 0.08, CI: 0.05-0.14, p<0.0001 for four or more years)., Conclusion: Overall mortality was high among MMT clients in China. Specific interventions aimed at decreasing mortality among MMT clients are needed. Our study supports the need for keeping client at MMT longer and for expanding ART coverage and suggests the potential benefits of integrated MMT and ART services for drug users in China.

Problem: China's National Methadone Maintenance Treatment Programme (MMT) has expanded from eight clinics serving approximately 1000 clients to 738 clinics that have served more than 340 000 clients cumulatively in only 8 years. This has created an enormous demand for trained providers., Approach: Human resource development and capacity building efforts have been conducted in China's National MMT Programme to create a supply of providers trained in administering MMT for opioid dependence., Local Setting: From 2004 to 2007, China's National MMT Programme faced several problems: inappropriately low methadone doses, poor compliance, high concurrent drug use and high drop-out rates among clients, and little experience, little training and high turnover rates among providers., Relevant Changes: Training programmes for individual providers and their trainers were redeveloped and expanded in 2008. Although programme performance metrics show an increase in patients' annual mean duration in treatment (93 days in 2004 versus 238 days in 2011), the increase in their mean daily methadone dose (from 47.2 mg in 2004 to 58.6 mg in 2011) is modest., Lessons Learnt: Some of the problems that can arise during the development, launch and scale-up of a major national public health effort, such as China's National MMT Programme, cannot be foreseen. Key to the programme's success so far have been the strong commitment on the part of China's government and the optimism and pragmatism of programme managers. Human resources development and capacity-building during scale-up have contributed to improved service quality in MMT treatment clinics and are critical to long-term success.

This study identifies structural-level factors influencing methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) program implementation in China. Twenty-eight service providers and 560 randomly selected clients from 28 MMT clinics in the study area underwent face-to-face interviews. Number of clients, retention rate, coverage, and structural-level factors were collected from a survey of service providers. Individual-level factors and self-reported illicit drug use information were obtained from clients. Urine specimens were collected from the client participants to test for heroin use. Clinics affiliated with the local Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had more clients, higher retention rates, and broader coverage than those not affiliated with the CDC. Longer operating hours, incentive for compliant clients, and comprehensive services were positively associated with client recruitment and coverage. Comprehensive services and incentives for compliant clients were negatively associated with concurrent illicit drug use. Comprehensive services should be incorporated into the MMT program. Extended operating hours and incentives for compliant clients should be implemented., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

BackgroundTo investigate factors associated with retention among the first cohort of drug users attending methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) clinics in China.MethodsA six-year cohort of 1511 drug users was enrolled in the first 8 MMT clinics in China in 2004 and followed between March, 2004 and December, 2010. Six-year retention rates were calculated and compared by methadone dosage, clinic location, and length of follow-up. Factors associated with retention were evaluated using Cox proportional hazard regression models.ResultsThe overall retention rate over 6-year was 35.7%. Highest drop-out occurred within the first 12 months of treatment. The retention rates for the 6-year by low (≤ 30 mg/day), medium (31-60 mg/day), and high (>60 mg/day) methadone dosage groups were 20.8%, 34.8% and 53.2%, respectively (p < 0.001). The highest 6-year retention rate among eight clinics was 43.8%, while the lowest one was 17.7% (p < 0.001). The results from Cox proportional hazard models indicate that clients having >30 mg daily methadone dosage (p < 0.001), having relatives receiving MMT (p = 0.027), and having >10% urine morphine positive result (p < 0.001) were more likely to be retained in MMT over the six-year period. It has also found that drug injection (p = 0.005) and needle sharing (p < 0.0001) were significantly associated with better retention.ConclusionsHealth workers should adjust individuals' methadone dosages as a method to prevent early treatment termination. Further studies are needed to explore the impact of severity of opiate addiction on long-term retention of MMT clients. Careful assessment of drug users upon MMT enrollment may be helpful for providing additional care to clients.