The Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Abstract

Because they can be transmitted to others, infectious diseases of all kinds have for many years been the subject of statutes, regulations, and court decisions imposing special constraints on both the patient's freedom and the physician's practice. The acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is now known to be an infectious disease. Three laboratories have recovered from patients with AIDS unique T-lymphocyte–associated retroviruses (the so-called AIDS retroviruses) that are almost certainly the etiologic agent.1 2 3 Serologic studies have confirmed the relation between AIDS retrovirus infection, AIDS, and the AIDS-related complex.2 , 3 The legality of measures to control the spread of infectious diseases is determined . . .