AIDS has not been cured, but research has shown how a mixture of treatments can ward off the worst effects of AIDS, for many years. Similarly, recent NIH-supported behavioral research has produced useful new knowledge, including a better understanding of basic behavioral and social processes and how they interact with biological processes. And that knowledge leads to treatments and other interventions to maintain health throughout the life span. This is an efficient use of resources and a beneficial mode of operation, because it links areas of related knowledge that might otherwise remain separated. A prime example of the application of behavioral intervention in concert with the use of medicines has to do with deadly diseases that are reemerging after decades of dormancy in this country.
Tuberculosis is the example that comes to mind.
These diseases are resurfacing at an alarming rate throughout the country. We face a serious challenge with respect to these diseases and our ability to curb them may become the public health problem of the 21st century. In fact, since the 1970s only 13 randomized and controlled studies have been conducted on adherence and treatment effects. Developing strategies and interventions for patients and doctors is critical to curbing the emergence of more drug-resistant infectious diseases. Behavioral and social scientists working with other scientists and health care providers can find answers to this growing problem.