Seroepidemiology of HIV infection in two cohorts of intravenous drug users in New York City.

Few issues have been able to capture the attention of the scientific community and the lay public in the manner that the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has. Despite significant advances in many areas, the morbidity and mortality statistics remain as somber reminders of the devastation attributed to this epidemic. This devastation appears particularly acute among those portions of the population already subject to the least desirable health status indicators. Efforts directed at known methods of disease acquisition and populations with a disproportionately greater susceptibility may serve as important foci of health prevention. To this end, intravenous drug users and minority group members present some interesting interrelationships.