Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of patients randomly enrolled into heroin maintenance programme or assigned to 6 month waiting list, Geneva, 1995-6. Values are means (SD) unless stated otherwise
| Variable | Experimental group (n=27) | Control group (n=24) |
|---|---|---|
| No (%) of men | 18 (67) | 20 (83) |
| Age (years) | 31.1 (4.7) | 32.8 (5.1) |
| Age at start of daily heroin use (years) | 18.4 (3.2) | 21.5 (5.8) |
| Lifetime No of overdoses | 4.9 (6.1) | 3.5 (5.4) |
| No (%) who had consumed several drugs together often or all the time in past month | 19 (70) | 13 (54) |
| Previous drug treatment episodes: | ||
| Detoxification | 3.9 (2.8) | 3.5 (2.5) |
| Methadone maintenance | 3.0 (1.4) | 3.5 (2.0) |
| Residential | 1.2 (1.5) | 0.7 (1.2) |
| No (%) with lifetime medical history: | ||
| Hepatitis (any type) | 15 (56) | 14 (58) |
| HIV infection | 4 (15) | 3 (12) |
| AIDS | 1 (4) | 1 (4) |
| Severe depression | 22 (82) | 14 (58) |
| Severe anxiety or stress | 25 (93) | 15 (62) |
| Problem controlling violent behaviour | 19 (70) | 8 (33) |
| Suicide attempt | 18 (67) | 9 (38) |
| No (%) who had ever practised commercial sex | 7 (26) | 5 (21) |
| No (%) unemployed for >12 months or never worked | 21 (78) | 17 (71) |
| No (%) who finished compulsory schooling | 18 (67) | 16 (67) |