From local studies to a regional perspective: pooled analysis of secondary data in a collaborative project on vulnerabilities associated with drug use in Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay (1998-2004)

https://doi.org/10.18294/sc.2012.164

Published 4 December 2012 Open Access


Licenciado en Sociología. Investigador, Intercambios Asociación Civil. Investigador, Instituto Gino Germani, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina. , Trabajadora Social. Especialista en Problemáticas Sociales Infanto-juveniles. Coordinadora, Área de Investigación, Intercambios Asociación Civil, Buenos Aires, Argentina. , Médico. Especialista en Clínica Médica y Epidemiología. Asesor médico e investigador, Intercambios Asociación Civil, Buenos Aires, Argentina. , Licenciada en Sociología. Instituto de Investigación y Desarrollo Social (IDES), Montevideo, Uruguay. , Médico. Doctor en Salud Pública. Investigador, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Río de Janeiro, Brasil. , Médica. Doctora en Ciencias. Directora del Observatório de Saúde Urbana & Grupo de Pesquisas em Epidemiologia, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Belo Horizonte, Brasil.



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Keywords:

Methodology, Data Analysis, Drug Users, HIV, Infectious Disease Transmission

Abstract


This paper develops the methodological principles of pooled analysis design, using it to study situations of vulnerability among drug users at a regional level. Data from thirteen cross-sectional studies carried out in Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay between 1998 and 2004 were integrated. A critical review of the concept of data matrix which identifies four structural components, allowed us to: define the units of analysis spanning the different original populations; identify a core of common variables (social and demographic characteristics, drug use, sexual practices, serology of blood-borne and sexually transmitted diseases) with their respective values; examine the indicators, dimensions and procedures used to measure the variables; and establish their compatibility with a thematic and comparative analysis of data collection tools. The main result was a new data matrix with 3,534 cases. Multidisciplinary collaboration between teams and institutions from the three countries made it possible to maximize the available sources in order to analyze characteristics of the local contexts and of the overall regional.