AIDS KNOWLEDGE AND RISK PERCEPTION OF COCAINE AND CRACK USERS IN A NATIONAL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY

Awareness of AIDS among cocaine and crack users has never been studied using national data representative of the U.S. household population. Data from the 1991 National Health Interview Survey were analyzed, Res pondents who reported cocaine (n = 448) or crack use (n = 100) in the past year were compared with those who reported never using any form o f cocaine (n = 17,259). AIDS knowledge, HIV testing, risk behavior, an d perceived risk for HN were outcomes studied. Over 96% of the drug us ers know the term HN compared with 89% of the nonusers. A higher propo rtion of cocaine users reorganized the effectiveness of condoms compar ed with nonusers (93% vs. 84%). Over 96% of all groups knew the risk o f sharing needles. Cocaine and crack users were more Likely to have be en tested for HIV (27% and 28%) compared with nonusers (13%), yet less than one third of those tested actually received HN counseling. High- risk behavior was acknowledged by 22% of cocaine users and 33% of crac k users. However, only 10% and 14% respectively considered themselves to be at increased risk for having or getting HIV. These data suggest that cocaine and crack users are knowledgeable regarding HIV/AIDS, how ever they are underestimating their real risk of infection with HN.