Conhecimentos e Crenças sobre Doenças Sexualmente Transmissíveis e Hiv/Aids entre Adolescentes e Jovens de Escolas Públicas Estaduais da Região Oeste de Goiânia

Abstract

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have a high prevalence constituting a publichealth problem throughout the world. Adolescents and young people are the population group most susceptible to STIs given their rate of unprotected sex. Ouraim was to investigate knowledge and beliefs about sexually transmitted infections/HIV/AIDS among male and female adolescents and young people between 15and 24 years of age attending public state schools in Goiânia’s West Region. Wecarried out a descriptive, transversal study based on a self-applied anonymousquestionnaire. The questionnaire was applied in the second semester of 2009 to 210students of six public primary and secondary state schools. The results demonstratean average knowledge of 77.0% in relation to AIDS; as for other STIs, the averageswere 42.4% for males and 57.4% for females. 95% of the students were aware ofthe protection provided by the use of condoms. Data analysis allows us to statethat adolescents and young people of both sexes have an unsatisfactory level ofknowledge about STIs/AIDS and continue to hold erroneous beliefs that put themat risk of AIDS and other STIs.