Something old, something new: the challenge of tuberculosis control in the age of AIDS.

T woman is quarantined in an isolation cell constructed of heavy gauge steel walls that are virtually sound-proof. Complete with a shower and a television, each cell is its own self-contained unit, effectively sealing off contact with all other persons. In one corner is an anteroom leading to a door. When the door is opened, the visitor is in contact with only the limited space of the anteroom. This woman is confined in such an impenetrable space because she has tuberculosis (TB). Although initially incarcerated for a petty crime, she was placed in a secure isolation unit for failing to complete her TB therapy. She has in effect been quarantined, not because she is contagious, but because she has failed to complete her treatment. In her isolation cell, she will be "properly monitored" until her release. This incident resounds of the last decade when demands for the detention and quarantine of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected individuals arose. These calls for quarantine appeared early in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic when the public was just starting to learn about the disease. Questions of who should be detained and quarantined hark back to the last century in the United States when these methods were used most no-