Are some people at greater risk of HIV infection than others?
A. HIV does not discriminate. It is not who you are, but what you do that determines whether you can become infected with HIV. Worldwide, sexual intercourse is by far the most common mode of HIV transmission, but in the U.S., as many as half of all new infections are now associated either directly or indirectly with injection drug use (i.e., using HIV-contaminated needles to inject drugs or having sexual contact with an HIV-infected drug user). Overall, HIV infection is spreading fastest in this country among young people, women, African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Caribbean-Americans.
