Episode 27: Infectious Complications of Injection Drug Use - Dr. David Goodman-Meza, UCLA

In this episode, I talk with Dr. David Goodman-Meza about the infectious disease complications associated with intravenous drug use. We discuss some of the most common infections seen in people who inject drugs (PWID), including Hepatitis C, HIV, skin and soft tissue infections, infective endocarditis, vertebral osteomyelitis, septic arthritis, and meningitis. Dr. Goodman-Meza goes on to explain the challenges PWID face in trying to get treatment for these infections and how he became interested in this field. Finally, he reviews strategies we can use to improve care for PWID, including having a specialty devoted to care of the entire patient struggling with substance use. 

David Goodman-Meza, MD, MAS is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. His diverse research interests include the epidemiology of HIV and STIs in high-risk populations, biomedical prevention of HIV in people who use substances, and improving infectious disease-related outcomes in people who inject drugs. He is site principal investigator for HPTN094, a randomized controlled trial evaluating the efficacy of mobile clinical units to improve health outcomes in people who inject drugs.

Read more about Dr. Goodman-Meza here:  https://www.uclahealth.org/providers/david-goodman

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