Table 1 Ever hepatitis C virus antibody testing by demographic, structural, mental health, drug use, and service engagement variables among people who inject drugs in Iran, 2023

Total, N

2308

532 (23.1)

23.0 (19.4, 30.2)

–

Demographics

Age group

18–29

136 (5.9)

13 (9.6)

9.0 (6.6, 12.9)

Ref

30–44

1,267 (54.9)

315 (24.9)

23.0 (18.6, 30.0)

3.13 (1.74, 5.62)

 < 0.001

 ≥ 45

905 (39.2)

204 (22.5)

24.1 (20.0, 26.3)

2.75 (1.52, 4.97)

0.001

Gender

Men

2,212 (95.8)

506 (22.9)

22.5 (18.1, 25.3)

Ref

Women

96 (4.2)

26 (27.1)

28.6 (20.0, 32.0)

1.25 (0.78, 1.98)

0.339

Education

Less than high school

1,544 (67.1)

347 (22.5)

23.0 (19.0, 28.9)

Ref

High school or more

756 (32.9)

182 (24.1)

25.6 (20.0, 29.6)

1.09 (0.89, 1.34)

0.392

Marital status

Divorced/widowed

1,091 (47.3)

196 (18.0)

20.0 (17.6, 25.4)

Ref

Currently married

532 (23.1)

177 (33.3)

30.0 (28.9, 36.6)

2.27 (1.79, 2.88)

 < 0.001

Single

683 (29.6)

158 (23.1)

22.6 (20.3, 28.6)

1.37 (1.08, 1.73)

0.008

Knowledge of HCV transmission through sharing needle/syringe

No

1,822 (78.9)

309 (17.0)

15.6 (14.5, 18.5)

Ref

Yes

486 (21.1)

223 (45.9)

43.5 (40.6, 48.7)

4.15 (3.34, 5.15)

 < 0.001

HIV serostatus

Negative

2,281 (98.8)

515 (22.6)

20.4 (19.6, 28.1)

Ref

Positive

27 (1.2)

17 (63.0)

65.2 (63.5, 68.8)

5.82 (2.65, 12.80)

 < 0.001

Structural variables

Having medical insurance

No

1,847 (80.9)

396 (21.4)

20.5 (19.5, 22.2)

Ref

Yes

436 (19.1)

128 (29.4)

29.3 (24.4, 30.5)

1.52 (1.20, 1.92)

 < 0.001

Lifetime experience of homelessness

No

842 (36.6)

250 (29.7)

30.4 (28.8, 36.6)

1.78 (1.46, 2.16)

 < 0.001

Yes

1,460 (63.4)

280 (19.2)

19.1 (18.6, 25.5)

Ref

Lifetime experience of arrest/incarceration

No

675 (29.3)

140 (20.7)

22.2 (17.1, 26.6)

Ref

Yes

1,630 (70.7)

392 (24.1)

23.6 (19.5, 29.0)

1.21 (0.97, 1.50)

0.087

Lifetime experience of stigma within healthcare settings

No

845 (37.3)

200 (23.7)

22.6 (18.5, 25.0)

Ref

Yes

1,422 (62.7)

331 (23.3)

22.0 (18.0, 25.6)

0.97 (0.80, 1.19)

0.831

Mental health

Diagnosed with any mental health problems, ever

No

2,065 (90.9)

448 (21.7)

21.0 (20.0, 26.0)

Ref

Yes

206 (9.1)

80 (38.8)

37.6 (32.2, 39.6)

2.29 (1.69, 3.09)

 < 0.001

Self-harm, ever

No

1,230 (53.6)

284 (23.1)

25.6 (23.3, 28.9)

Ref

Yes

1,065 (46.4)

246 (23.1)

25.9 (22.9, 29.4)

1.00 (0.82, 1.21)

0.996

Drug use

Length of injecting, years

 < 5

413 (17.9)

46 (11.1)

10.5 (9.5, 12.6)

Ref

5–10

615 (26.6)

115 (18.7)

17.4 (15.6, 19.6)

1.83 (1.27, 2.65)

0.001

 > 10

1,280 (55.5)

371 (29.0)

30.0 (27.1, 35.6)

3.25 (2.34, 4.52)

 < 0.001

Frequency of injection, last 6 months

No injection

440 (19.5)

76 (17.3)

17.6 (15.2, 16.9)

Ref

Weekly/Monthly

734 (32.6)

208 (28.3)

27.6 (25.3, 30.1)

1.89 (1.41, 2.54)

 < 0.001

Daily

1,078 (47.9)

237 (22.0)

20.6 (28.9, 25.6)

1.35 (1.01, 1.79)

0.040

Lifetime experience of non-fatal overdose

No

1,646 (71.5)

321 (19.5)

20.5 (17.3, 27.0)

Ref

Yes

655 (28.5)

210 (32.1)

30.6 (26.8, 35.6)

1.94 (1.58, 2.38)

 < 0.001

Service engagement

Needle exchange, last 12 months

No

607 (26.8)

35 (5.8)

4.9 (3.0, 9.1)

Ref

Yes

1,660 (73.2)

492 (29.6)

25.4 (19.3, 29.0)

6.88 (4.81, 9.83)

 < 0.001

Opioid agonist treatment, last 6 months

No

1,715 (74.6)

332 (19.4)

17.9 (14.0, 19.1)

Ref

Yes

584 (25.4)

198 (33.9)

34.5 (30.1, 39.9)

2.13 (1.73, 2.63)

 < 0.001

Receiving HBV vaccine, ever

No

1,617 (77.6)

321 (19.8)

20.9 (17.4, 25.6)

Ref

Yes

466 (22.4)

182 (39.1)

40.2 (38.8, 46.4)

2.58 (2.07, 3.23)

 < 0.001