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Randolph F. Wykoff, MD, MPH, TM
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Greenwood

JAMA. 1986;255(13):1706-1707.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.—

In Dr Echenberg's recent editorial,¹ he called for "all AIDS [acquired immunodeficiency syndrome] patients [to] be interviewed to obtain their heterosexual contacts and that these contacts be tested for LAV/ARV [lymphadenopathy-associated virus/AIDS-related virus] antibodies."

This proposal is important in that it calls for long overdue epidemiologic studies on the spread of LAV/ARV (human T-cell lymphotropic virus type III [HTLV-III]) in currently low-risk populations. I join Dr Echenberg in believing that we have reached a point in the current LAV/ARV (HTLV-III) epidemic where efforts to attempt to protect the public must outweigh potential interference with individual privacy.

Two important additions must be made to Dr Echenberg's proposals, however, to make them maximally efficient. The first addition is the inclusion of all persons with LAV/ ARV (HTLV-III) infections, regardless of clinical symptoms. All potentially infective persons (including the majority with no clinical disease, those with persistent generalized lymphadenopathy . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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