ABSTRACT
Given the media attention to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–the virus that causes AIDS–it is likely that major segments of the world's population have at least heard of the disease. Given the mechanisms of infection, the population groups having the highest rates of HIV and AIDS include men who have sex with other men, persons who share injection equipment, and recipients of blood products. The sharing of hypodermic needles, syringes, and other injection equipment is the most likely route of HIV transmission among injection drug users. A number of researchers have suggested that the infrequent documentation of heterosexual transmission from women to men in Europe and the Americas may be a function of the history of the epidemic. Injection drug users require water to both rinse their syringes and mix with their drugs to liquefy them for injection. This chapter presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
