This longitudinal study examines male veterans with a history of cocai
ne dependence and treatment, focusing on the relationship between leve
ls of crack use and HIV-related knowledge, beliefs and risk behaviours
. Over half the subjects were African-American and the majority were h
eterosexual. A survey instrument was administered at one and two years
after initiating treatment. HIV serotesting was conducted at each int
erview which showed the rate of seropositivity to be low at both point
s. Knowledge about HIV transmission increased significantly over time
for the sample, but no differences were significantly related to level
of crack use. Few subjects report the use of condoms on a consistent
basis, regardless of crack use level. However, both the number of sex
partners reported and beliefs about personal susceptibility to HIV inf
ection increased as the level of crack use increased. Our crack-using
subjects had not fully internalized their risk of HIV infection or wer
e fatalistic about their ability to change HIV-related risk behaviors.
Either of these possibilities presents a significant challenge to edu
cation and prevention efforts targeted to crack users. AIDS education
efforts in drug treatment programs- may need to more strongly emphasiz
e the sexual transmission routes of HIV infection and highlight the ef
fects of cocaine use on sexual practices.