Knowledge, attitude and practice towards sexually transmitted diseases amongst the inmates of women shelters homes at Klang Valley

Abstract

Background Previous studies show that there is a changing trend of sexual and reproductive behaviour among youth and this requires more attention and awareness especially on sexually transmitted diseases (STD). This study was carried out to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice of sexually transmitted diseases among selected inmates of women shelter homes. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out by involving 60 participants whom aged in between 13 to 25 years old. The questionnaires were developed in ‘Bahasa Melayu’ and it has been anonymous guided questionnaires. Results The result showed that the mean age of the participants was 17.9 years old and most of the participants have completed secondary school (91.7%). Overall, the level of knowledge of participants on STDs were classified into three groups; ‘high knowledge’ (33.3%), ‘medium knowledge’ (35.0%) and ‘low knowledge’ (31.7%). The majority have heard of HIV/AIDS (95%) but with respect to other STDs was less well known. Whereas, the mean score for attitude was 23.1 out total 25. Their knowledge level was not influenced by their age ( p = 0.61) and socio-economic status ( p = 0.85). However, their attitude was influenced by their age ( p < 0.05). Conclusion Knowledge on non-HIV STDs is still lacking and risky behaviours have been practiced. Although there were high level of knowledge and attitude among them but their practice on sexuality contradicts it especially on contraceptive use and pre-marital sex.

Knowledge of sexually transmitted infections and its associated factors among polytechnic college students in southwest Ethiopia

“…This finding was higher than 27% in Udupi Taluk, India [ 25 ]. However, lower than 45.4% in Gondar, Ethiopia [ 35 ], 68.3% in the Klang Valley, Malaysia [ 24 ], 70.1% in northern Cape Province, South Africa [ 26 ], 74.7% in urban slums of Jorhat District, India [ 15 ], 79% in Dhaka, Bangladesh [ 20 ], 86.6% in Malaysia [ 21 ], 89.9% in Brazil [ 17 ], 92.4% in Nigeria [ 16 ], and 98% in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania [ 18 ]. The variation observed compared to other studies could be due to the differences in methodology, sample size, and operational definition used.…”

“…The health-seeking behavior of STIs may largely depend on knowledge about STIs [ 14 ]. Several studies have been conducted worldwide regarding knowledge about STIs and reported that 74.7% in India [ 15 ], 92.4% in Nigeria [ 16 ], 89.9% in Brazil [ 17 ], 98% in Tanzania [ 18 ], 88.5% in Jimma, Ethiopia [ 19 ], 79% in Dhaka, Bangladesh [ 20 ], 86.6% in Malaysia [ 21 ], 74% medical and 61.6% non-medical university students in Pakistan [ 22 ], 83.1% in Turkey [ 23 ], 68.3% in Klang Valley, Malaysia [ 24 ], 27% in Udupi Taluk, India [ 25 ], and 70.1% in northern Cape Province, South Africa [ 26 ] of the respondents had good knowledge of STIs. The factors that influence knowledge of STIs are diverse and include age, sex, residence, marital status, academic year, and acquiring information from friends/internet and mass media [ 5 , 18 , 27 - 34 ].…”

Knowledge, Attitudes, Risk Behaviours and Preventive Practices on Sexually Transmitted Diseases Among Students in a Public University in Malaysia

“…Although, majority of the students in this study correctly identified that monogamy (82.0%) helps to reduce the risk of STDs infection, surprisingly, half of the students who were sexually active for the past 12 months, had sex with more than one partner. Likewise, a study at Klang Valley revealed that despite having immense knowledge of preventive practices, more than half of the participants admitted having three or more sexual partner 16 . Thereby, having complete understanding on its own does not always guarantee the behaviour and practice of a person.…”

Analysis of Knowledge of Senior High School (SMA N) 2 Singaparna Students About Epidemiology of Sexual Transmitted Infections (STIs) and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) in 2019

“…Zin's research (2019) states that knowledge of STIs is very important to reduce STI transmission. The high prevalence of STIs such as HIV, gonorrhea, and syphilis one of the risk factors is knowledge [17]. To increase the knowledge of STI, it can be done through various ways, namely through health promotion from the internet, television, radio.…”