Anxiety and stigmatizing aspects of HIV infection.

While it is not yet known what role anxiety may play in causing or exacerbating the immunologic aberration characteristic of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is associated with a high incidence of psychologic and neuropsychiatric complications, including anxiety and adjustment disorders. The anxiety may be exacerbated by the isolation and fear patients may experience as a result of the stigma attached to the HIV diagnosis. The author addresses the consequences of anxiety related to the AIDS stigma and discusses appropriate psychiatric interventions.