by James Cooper

About the author: James Cooper is associate director for medical affairs in the Division of Clinical and Services Research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a federal program that conducts research in an attempt to improve drug abuse and addiction prevention, treatment, and policy.

In the United States, approximately 600,000 people are addicted to heroin. In recent years, data from several sources suggest that there is an increase in new heroin users as well as an emerging pattern of drug use among the young. Heroin addiction is often associated with increased criminal activity and human suffering. Since 1988, there has been a dramatic increase in the prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and tuberculosis among intravenous heroin users. From 1991 to 1995 in major metropolitan areas, the annual...