Determinants of knowledge on sexually transmitted infections among students in public higher education institutions in Melaka state, Malaysia

Mansor, Norain; Ahmad, Norliza; Rahman, Habibur

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0240842

Cited by 24 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Participants who had tertiary education were three times more likely to have a higher knowledge score compared with the participants who had primary education. Consistent with our findings is a study which was conducted in Melaka Malasyia; they found that participants who were studying in a degree program were two times more likely to be knowledgeable about STIs than the one who were not (25) Further this study revealed that sexual behaviour of the study participants in terms of sex with whom, bisexual men had higher odds of knowledge about STIs compared to gay men. These findings are contrary to (26,27) who reported that bisexual men had limited availability of culturally sensitive education materials or health information that is specifically targeted to their needs.…”

Section: Stissupporting

confidence: 91%

Sexually transmitted infection knowledge levels, socio-demographic characteristics and sexual behaviour among men who have sex with men: results from a cross-sectional survey in Nairobi, Kenya

Nyasani

Lunani²,

Oino

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Background: High rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among men who have sex with men (MSM) have been reported, there is little research on their STI knowledge. Our study sought to characterize knowledge and awareness of STIs among MSM in Nairobi, Kenya. Methods We mobilized MSM aged ≥18 years from Nairobi into a cross-sectional study. To determine their understanding about STIs, a pre-tested structured questionnaire was administered. Knowledge score was generated by summing up the number of responses answered correctly by a participant. We dichotomized scores as “low” and “high”, by splitting the group at <12 and ≥12 which was the mean. Results A total of 404 participants were interviewed between the month of March and August 2020. The mean age was 25.2 (SD=6.4) years. Majority were single (80.4%) and Christians (84.2%). All participants had some formal education ranging from primary to tertiary; the majority (92.3%) had secondary education or more. Most (64.0%) were employed and their monthly income ranged from <50->150 USD. Almost all (98.5%) were Kenyans. Of the 404 (90.6%) self-identified as male and (47.5%) reported to be exclusively top partners. Many (39.9%) reported being both bottom and top, while those reporting to be bottom partners were, (12.6%). The last 12 months, (55.4%) of the participants reported having sex with men only and (88.6%) reported to have had more than one sexual partner. Participants scored an average of 12.2, out of 29 SD 4.5. The multivariable modelling revealed that participants aged ≥25 years were more likely to have a higher knowledge score compared with the participants aged 18-24 years (aOR=0.973, CI: 0.616-1.538). Regarding education and occupation, participants who had tertiary education and those who were employed were more likely to have a higher knowledge score compared with the participants who had primary education and were not employed ( aOR=2.627, CI:1.142-6.043) (aOR=0.922, CI: 0.401-2.117). Participants who were earning (USD >150) were more likely to have a higher knowledge score compared to the ones who were not earning (aOR=2.520, CI: 0.900-7.055). Further bisexual men were more likely to have a higher knowledge score compared with the participants who were having sex with men only (aOR= 1.550, CI: 1026-2.342) Conclusion Participant’s knowledge level regarding STIs was low. We recommend health care workers to continue educating patients about STIs.

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Section: Stissupporting

confidence: 91%

Sexually transmitted infection knowledge levels, socio-demographic characteristics and sexual behaviour among men who have sex with men: results from a cross-sectional survey in Nairobi, Kenya

Nyasani

Lunani²,

Oino

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…The current study revealed that overall knowledge was moderate to high, with around three-quarters of respondents answering more than half the questions correctly; this is higher than the overall knowledge reported in other studies from Kufa in south Iraq ( 18 ), Iran ( 9 ), and Saudi Arabia ( 11 ) and comparable to results from Malaysia ( 20 , 24 ). In this study, knowledge about STIs was not affected by gender.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 75%

Assessing knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward sexually transmitted infections among Baghdad undergraduate students for research-guided sexual health education

Al-Gburi

Al-Shakarchi

Al-Dabagh

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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BackgroundSexually transmitted infections are common and tend to cause a lot of public misconceptions. This study was conducted to identify knowledge gaps and negative attitudes toward sexually transmitted infections and infected individuals among undergraduate students and give recommendations accordingly for the development of more objective research-guided health campaigns and school sex education programs.MethodA cross-sectional study was conducted between May 17, 2022 and June 2, 2022 using a self-administrated questionnaire containing 84 items related to sexually transmitted infections distributed online to Baghdad-based university students.ResultThe sample consisted of 823 respondents; 332 men and 491 women. Overall knowledge was moderate to high, with 628 individuals (76.3%) answering more than half the questions correctly. There was no difference according to gender or previous sexual experience, but knowledge increased by an average of 2.73 points (p < 0.001) when a participant knew a previously infected individual. Less than half identified systemic symptoms of STIs, and their knowledge of other HIV items was also poor. Most respondents (85.5%) agreed to the need for sex education during middle or high school and cited traditional barriers as the most critical barrier (64.8%); in comparison, those who did not agree on its need cited the sensitivity of the subject (40.3%) or religious barriers (20.2%) as more important.ConclusionSpecific knowledge gaps exist for HIV and non-HIV sexually transmitted infections; these should be addressed during sex education, focusing on specific high-risk groups. Negative attitudes and stigmatizing behavior should be addressed as well by increasing focused STI knowledge.

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“…As a result, many adolescents have no knowledge or are misinformed about issues relating to sex. Sex education is essential in reducing unwanted pregnancies and teenagers ought to be properly informed about issues relating to sexual activities [ 20 , 21 ]. Although the majority of the study participants in this study opined that there is a need for increased sex education among high school students as a means of preventing unwanted pregnancy, however most of them were not in support of condoms handout in schools because they believe it could increase promiscuity among teenagers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Causes, enablers and perceived solutions to teenage pregnancy: a qualitative study in a South-Western State in Nigeria

Esan¹,

Muhammad²,

Okocha³

et al. 2022

Pan Afr Med J

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Introduction teenage pregnancy remains a major public health issue in Nigeria with many teenagers being fated to early motherhood resulting in a life filled with turmoil. The aim of this study was to explore the perspectives of teachers and students of high schools on the causes, enablers and solutions to teenage pregnancy. Methods this study employed an exploratory design using a qualitative approach. Participants were selected using purposive sampling technique and a total number of 33 participants interviewed. Data collection was done by means of audio-recorded semi-structured interviews and data were analysed using a thematic analysis approach. Descriptive statistics were used to generate participants' demographic profile. Results three themes emerged from the study. They include perception of teachers and students on the causes of teenage pregnancy, perceived enablers of teenage pregnancy and solutions to teenage pregnancy. Findings revealed that the majority of the participants had knowledge of teenage pregnancy but had limited knowledge of contraceptives, particularly the students. Almost all participants viewed teenage pregnancy as a more common occurrence in their community than in schools. Participants identified poverty, peer pressure and poor parental control as causes of teenage pregnancy. Participants further identified poverty, substance abuse and lack of education as enablers of teenage pregnancy while perceived solutions included poverty eradication, abstinence from sexual activities, girl child education and government involvement. Majority of the participants disagreed with giving condoms to teenagers in schools. Conclusion among other causes of teenage pregnancy identified in this study, poverty was a recurring theme. Therefore, there is, a need for the government of Nigeria to combat poverty at all levels, as a strategy to curb teenage pregnancy while not neglecting other causes.

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Determinants of knowledge on sexually transmitted infections among students in public higher education institutions in Melaka state, Malaysia

Cited by 24 publications

References 26 publications

Sexually transmitted infection knowledge levels, socio-demographic characteristics and sexual behaviour among men who have sex with men: results from a cross-sectional survey in Nairobi, Kenya

Sexually transmitted infection knowledge levels, socio-demographic characteristics and sexual behaviour among men who have sex with men: results from a cross-sectional survey in Nairobi, Kenya

Assessing knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward sexually transmitted infections among Baghdad undergraduate students for research-guided sexual health education

Causes, enablers and perceived solutions to teenage pregnancy: a qualitative study in a South-Western State in Nigeria

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