HIV instruction, HIV knowledge, and drug injection among high school students in the United States.

Abstract

BACKGROUND. The prevalence of HIV-related behaviors and determinants of these behaviors among adolescents in the United States have not been well studied. METHODS. To determine the prevalence of HIV-related drug behaviors and to assess the effects of HIV-related school-based instruction and HIV knowledge on these behaviors, data were analyzed from a 39-item, self-administered questionnaire completed by a probability sample of all students in grades 9 through 12 in the United States. RESULTS. Usable responses were obtained from 8098 students. Of these, 2.7% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.3-3.2) and 1.7% (95% CI = 1.3-2.1) reported injecting illicit drugs ever and during the past year, respectively. Corresponding prevalences of needle sharing were 0.8% (95% CI = 0.5-1.1) and 0.5% (95% CI = 0.3-0.7). Regression analysis revealed that students with higher knowledge scores were less likely and males more likely to have ever injected drugs. HIV knowledge was similarly associated with other outcome measures of drug-injection behavior. Although HIV instruction did not directly influence drug-injection behavior independently of demographic characteristics, it was positively associated with HIV knowledge. CONCLUSIONS. While these results do not establish a causal relationship, they suggest that HIV knowledge and school-based instruction may play a role in maintaining low levels of drug-injection behavior among high school students.

Changes in HIV-related information sources, instruction, knowledge, and behaviors among US high school students, 1989 and 1990.

“…Furthermore, the weighted percentages of White, Black, and Hispanic students in both surveys were not unlike the racial and ethnic distribution of 9th through 12th grade students in the United States, suggesting that the samples were representative of the general population of students. 5 Instruction, Knowledge, and Behavior…”

“…Several recent studies have investigated the extent to which adolescents in the United States engage in behaviors that place them at risk for HIV infection. [1][2][3][4][5] Although a few studies have tried to assess changes in these behaviors over time, their findings have been limited. "…”

Gender Differences in the Influence of Protective Factors, Risk Factors, and Health Risk Behaviors on HIV Risk Behaviors Among Youth in South Florida

“…School-based HIV prevention programs, specifically, have shown to increase HIV/AIDS knowledge, modify attitudes regarding susceptibility to infection, and increase likelihood of using contraception (Brown, Fritz, & Barone, 1989;Kirby, 2002a;Newman, DuRant, Ashworth, & Gaillard, 1993;Siegel, DiClemente, Durbin, Krasnovsky, & Saliba, 1995). One study suggested that knowledge of HIV and school-based instruction may also play a role in maintaining lower levels of IDU behavior among high school students (Holtzman et al, 1991). A previous study found a very strong relationship between sex education classes and condom use on Hispanic adolescent males (Moran & Corley, 1991).…”

“…According to TGP (Wingood & DiClemente, 2000), limited access to sex education in schools is a risk factor for HIV, and previous research has indicated that receipt of sex education has a protective effect for HIV and sexual risk behaviors among youth (Armstrong et al, 2009;Kirby, 2002a;Kirby & Lepore, 2007;Holtzman, et al, 1991;Mueller et al, 2008). Kirby, Laris, and Rolleri (2005) found that sex education programs have a positive impact on sexual behavior, including delaying the initial sexual experience and reducing the frequency of sexual activity and number of partners.…”

“…Kirby, Laris, and Rolleri (2005) found that sex education programs have a positive impact on sexual behavior, including delaying the initial sexual experience and reducing the frequency of sexual activity and number of partners. Schoolbased programs have also been shown to increase contraceptive use (Brown, Fritz, & Barone, 1989;Kirby, 2002a;Newman, DuRant, Ashworth, & Gaillard, 1993;Siegel, DiClemente, Durbin, Krasnovsky, & Saliba, 1995), and may also play a role in maintaining lower levels of IDU behavior among high school students (Holtzman et al, 1991).…”