The epidemiology of HIV infection and AIDS in east and central Harlem, NY.

This report describes the AIDS epidemic in East and Central Harlem, among the hardest-hit communities in the nation. Information was obtained from two New York State mandatory reporting programs: anonymous HIV antibody testing of newborns, and physician and hospital reports of AIDS cases to city and county public health departments. One of 30 babies born in East Harlem and one of 46 newborns in Central Harlem are seropositive. The cumulative rate of reported AIDS cases in these communities is 10-15 times the national rate, and together, the communities reported 1.3% of all AIDS cases in the nation, although they have only 0.1% of the nation's population; 2.2% of all childhood AIDS cases have been reported from East and Central Harlem. Women, minorities, and injection drug users comprise a higher proportion of the cases than in the city, the state, and the nation. The consequences of the epidemic in these communities are enormous, including profound stresses on community institutions and exacerbation of the resurgence of tuberculosis.