Volume 23, Number 8—August 2017
Dispatch
Opiate Injection–Associated Skin, Soft Tissue, and Vascular Infections, England, UK, 1997–2016
, Magdalena Harris, and Vivian Hope
Table
Demographic characteristics of patients with and without injecting-related infections, England, UK, April 5, 1997–April 4, 2016*
| Characteristic | Patients with injecting-related infections | Patients with non–injecting-related infections |
|---|---|---|
| Median age, y (IQR) | ||
| All | 34 (29–39) | 40 (30–48) |
| M | 34 (30–40) | 40 (31–48) |
| F | 32 (27–37) | 39 (29–48) |
| By year | ||
| 2000–01 | 31 (27–36) | 39 (30–48) |
| 2005–06 | 32 (28–37) | 39 (30–47) |
| 2010–11 | 35 (30–41) | 40 (30–48) |
| 2015–16 |
38 (33–43) |
41 (30–49) |
| Female sex, % | ||
| All | 28 | 44 |
| By age group, y | ||
| 15–34 | 32 | 45 |
| 35–44 | 23 | 42 |
| 45–54 |
22 |
43 |
| Neighborhood deprivation quintile, % | ||
| 1 (least deprived) | 5 | 21 |
| 2 | 10 | 21 |
| 3 | 16 | 20 |
| 4 | 25 | 20 |
| 5 (most deprived) | 44 | 19 |
*Selected years are shown for brevity. Patients with injecting-related infections were younger for both sexes and in each year (p<0.001, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests). A smaller proportion of patients with injecting-related infections were female for all age groups (p<0.001, χ2 tests). Age group was associated with sex for both injecting-related and non–injecting-related infections (p<0.001, χ2 tests). A linear trend described the proportion of injecting-related admissions in each deprivation quintile better than no trend (p = 0.009) but not for non–injecting-related admission (p = 0.504). Neighborhood deprivation was the UK Department for Community and Local Government’s Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004. IQR, interquartile range.