Injecting heroin, or any drug such as cocaine and barbiturates, is associated with many local and systemic complications for the individual and also is associated with the transmission of infectious diseases through needle sharing and sexual activity (Baciewicz 2005). Illegal drug production and injection drug use have become globalized during recent years, and according to the World Health Organization, in 1993 some eighty countries report the existence of injecting drug use, and fifty-two of these countries report human immunodeficiency virus, HIV, infection among injecting drug users, IDUs (Baciewicz 2005). In 1999, 136 countries reported injecting drug use, and some 93 of these countries reported HIV infection among IDUs (Baciewicz 2005). Injecting drug use and HIV infection can spread rapidly within a community, and the introduction of and rapid increase in injecting drug use is believed to be responsible for the dramatic increases in HIV infection in many areas, especially in developing countries (Baciewicz 2005). In fact, in many developing countries, injecting drug is the primary risk factor for HIV infection (Baciewicz 2005). .

             Injecting drug use is responsible for many medical problems by introducing pathogens and other contaminants into the body through shared needles and a lack of sterile preparation and injection techniques (Baciewicz 2005). Moreover, medical problems can arise from damage caused by the drugs themselves, such as morbidity and mortality associated with drug overdose (Baciewicz 2005). The drugs that are injected may not be pure, and may be cut with irritants such as talc, lactate, or quinine (Baciewicz 2005). Death from the direct toxic effects of a heroin overdose is usually associated with respiratory depression, coma, and pulmonary edema, while death from the direct effects of cocaine are most often associated with cardiac dysrhythmias and conduction disturbances, which lead to myocardial infarction and stroke (Baciewicz 2005).