Journal Article

Prevalence of Gonococcal and Chlamydial Infections and Sexual Risk Behavior Among Youth in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

TAFFA, NEGUSSIE, ALESTRØM, ANETTE, GAUSTAD, PETER, BJUNE, GUNNAR, SUNDBY, JOHANNE

2002

Overview

Background: No community-based study on the magnitude of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) has ever been conducted among young people in Ethiopia. Goal: To assess the magnitude of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections and status of sexual risk behavior among youths (15-24 years old) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Study Design: Youths in or out of school residing in two (of the six) administrative zones in Addis Ababa served as the study population. Participants filled out a self-administered questionnaire related to sexuality and its sociocultural determinants. First-void urine (FVU) was analyzed for gonorrhea and chlamydial infection by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: A total of 561 youths took part in the study. Urine PCR was performed for 522 of them. Nine subjects (1.7%) were found to have N gonorrhoeae and trachomatis infections. There were five cases (1.0%) involving each agent. Double infection was noted in one female subject. All but one of the infections were detected among the out-of-school youths (chisquare = 4.5; P < 0.05). None of these subjects complained of symptoms suggestive of an active STD. One-third (188/561) reported having had sexual intercourse. The prevalence among sexually active youths was thus 4.8% (9/188) for both infections combined (2.7% for each agent). While 7/52 (13.5%) of the sexually active females were found to also have STDs, only 2/136 (1.5%) of the males had an STD (chi-square = 8.0; P < 0.01). Report of sexual activity was significantly associated with being male, an age of ≥20 years, out-of-school status, and report of alcohol/khat (amphetamine-like substance) consumption. Females reported less condom use, whether they were in or out of school and independent of age. Conclusions: Out-of-school youths, especially females, took more sexual risk and were exceedingly susceptible to STDs. This calls for alternative group-targeted strategies for sex education, disease prevention, and STD screening and management.

• Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins,Lippincott,Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Ovid Technologies
• Subject: Adolescent / Adolescent Behavior / Adult / Alcohol use / Alternative approaches / Amphetamines / At risk youth / Bacterial diseases / Biological and medical sciences / Chemical analysis / Chi-square test / Chlamydia Infections - epidemiology / Chlamydia Infections - etiology / Chlamydia trachomatis / Disease prevention / Disease transmission / DNA, Bacterial - isolation & purification / Drinking behavior / Ethiopia - epidemiology / Female / Females / Gonorrhea / Gonorrhea - epidemiology / Gonorrhea - etiology / Human bacterial diseases / Humans / Infections / Infectious diseases / Khat / Male / Medical sciences / Medical screening / Miscellaneous / Polymerase Chain Reaction / Prevalence / Risk behavior / Risk Factors / Risk taking / Schools / Sex education / Sexual Behavior / Sexual intercourse / Sexuality / Sexually transmitted diseases / Sociocultural factors / Socioeconomic Factors / STD / Surveys and Questionnaires / Teenagers / Urinalysis / Youth