Of the 29,137 cases of AIDS reported to the Centers for Disease Control through January 6, 1987, 410 (1.4 percent) were in children under age 13 and 127 (0.4 percent) were in adolescents ages 13 to 19. Sixty percent of pediatric and 52 percent of adolescent AIDS patients have died. Cases in both children and adolescents have increased, but the proportion of total AIDS cases in children and adolescents has remained constant over time. Most children were infected perinatally, while adolescents tended to follow adult patterns of transmission. The true risk of perinatal transmission from an infected mother to her child remains unknown. Prevention of perinatal transmission will require linguistically and culturally appropriate risk-reduction educational campaigns targeted at sexually active women. Risk reduction among adolescents involves programs aimed at transmission associated with sexual behavior and drug use. Casual contact has not spread any of the identified cases. Tables, figures, and 61 references.