HIV and STI Prevention Among Spanish Women Who have Sex with Women: Factors Associated with Dental Dam and Condom Use

Abstract

The scientific community has systematically ignored the needs of women who have sex with women (WSW). The invisibilization of romantic and sexual relationships between women has caused a profound lack of knowledge about the impact of HIV and other STIs on this population subgroup. This study aims to analyze the frequency of dental dam and condom use in WSW and identify the variables that explain the use of these two preventive methods. The sample is composed of 327 women aged between 18 and 60 years (M = 27.82; SD = 8.10). The results indicate that only 4.7% of those who practice cunnilingus and 5.2% of those who practice anilingus report “always” using dental dam (systematic use). Condoms are used systematically by 37.1% of those who practice vaginal penetration and 37.8% of those who practice anal penetration. Age, high perceived self-efficacy, and adequate assertive communication skills are variables significantly related to preventive behavior. The severity attributed to HIV and the perceived risk of infection are protective factors regarding dental dam use. For condom use, high levels of internalized homophobia and drug use are risk factors. Future preventive strategies should provide information on preventive strategies to WSW who, for different reasons, are not involved in LGBT contexts or associations and, therefore, do not have access to training activities and mistakenly believe that they are invulnerable as they do not have sexual relations with men.

Sexo Oral

“…O mesmo poderá ser feito no que tange ao sexo oral. A confiança no parceiro é outro fator que impede o uso de métodos que deixariam o sexo oral mais seguro (CAETANO et al, 2010;GIL-LLARIO et al, 2022;HILLE;CLÓVIS MARZOLA, 2014), cabendo à discussão sobre o cuidado conjunto para IST entre as parcerias. Além disso, outro fator que pode explicar a ocorrência da discrepância entre o uso de camisinha no sexo penetrativo vaginal em detrimento das demais práticas é o uso de preservativo com o objetivo de prevenir a gravidez, negligenciando a prevenção das IST's (BLANC MOLINA; ROJAS TEJADA, 2018).…”

“…CONTROL AND PREVENTION, 2017). Esses métodos são pouco conhecidos e divulgados, como os dental dams que não foram feitos, registrados ou testados para esse propósito (GIL-LLARIO et al, 2022). Ademais, não existem estudos que testam sua permeabilidade aos patógenos das IST's e provavelmente são menos impermeáveis que os preservativos, por terem uma camada mais fina de látex.…”

Experiences with Cling Film and Dental Dam Use in Oral Sex: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review

“…The second study was the study by [72] In that study, it was reported that older age was a significant predictor of dental dam use among women who had sex with women (p-value < 0.05).…”

“…Only one study [72] investigated the influence of knowledge on dental dam use. In the study, it was reported that having high self-efficacy for dental dam use, self-perception of HIV as a serious infection, and self-perception of one's vulnerability to HIV infection were significant predictors of dental dam use among women who have sex with women (p-values < 0.05) (Table 7).…”

“…Only one study [72] investigated the influence of drugs on dental dam use. In the study, it was reported that the non-use of cannabis during sex was a significant predictor of dental dam use among women who have sex with women (p-value < 0.05) (Table 7).…”