Objective To know the cognition degree on AIDS and the interposal effect of health education among practitioners at Futian District of Shenzhen, in order to provide evidence for further developing the propaganda and education. Methods The practitioners from public places who corned to get the health certificate in 2007 were randomly sampled and investigated. Then they were intervened about health education. The questionnaire survey was conducted again one week after the health education interposal. Results 300 copies of the questionnaire were distributed, and 285 valid questionnaires recovered. Before the interposal, the correct cognition rate of AIDS was only 52.11%, but raised to 86.56% after the interposal (P <0. 01). Conclusions The practitioners have a preliminary understanding of AIDS, but they are rather ambiguous about the danger of AIDS and the dissemination channels. It' s should actively carry out the health promotion activities in order to change the AIDS-related high-risk behavior and the way of life, thereby controlling its transmission.