According to specialists at the University of Bristol, UK, available data found that incidence for both conditions is too high, reporting an average of 1.7 per 100 people per year with HIV/AIDS and 12.1 with HCV.

Whether 100 HIV- and HCV-uninfected injecting drug users were followed for a year, nearly two would catch HIV and 12 would catch HCV, according to The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology report.

Researchers showed the risk of contracting HIV and HCV among young injecting drug users was 1.5 times higher than among older injecting drug users; meanwhile, women were 1.4 times more likely to get infected with HIV.

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