Abstract
BackgroundCollege students were the key group we should pay more attention for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) prevention and control in recent years in China. Few studies of HIV non-occupational post-exposure prophylaxis (nPEP) knowledge and service acceptance had been conducted among them in China. This study conducted a cross-sectional survey to understand the service acceptance of nPEP and its influencing factors among college students in the three cities of China.MethodsA questionnaire survey was conducted to collect information on socio-demographic, behavioral characteristic, HIV/AIDS knowledge, nPEP knowledge, acceptance of nPEP services among the college students in Beijing, Shenzhen, and Kunming of China from March to April of 2019. Each participant completed an anonymous questionnaire on line by computer-assisted or mobile phone-assisted self-interview with informed consent. Multivariable logistic regression analyses identified predictors for service acceptance of nPEP.ResultsA total of 4698 students were surveyed with the average age of 20 years old. 98.0% (4605/4698) of them were undergraduates, 21.8%(1022/4698) had sexual intercourse; 48.6% (2282/4698) heard of nPEP, among which 4.95%(113/2282) received nPEP services. The awareness rate of HIV/AIDS knowledge was 85.6% (5495/4698) with the differences statistically significant between the three cities. The awareness rate of nPEP knowledge was 16.5% (774/4698). There were significant differences in receiving nPEP services among students of different ages, genders, sexual behaviors, and knowledge of HIV/AIDS by univariate analysis. Multivariable analyses indicated that age group of 18 and under (OR = 2.551, 95% CI = 1.153–5.646), male (OR = 3.131, 95% CI = 1.866–5.253), homosexual behavior (OR = 4.661,95%CI = 2.658–8.172), heterosexual behavior (OR = 1.676, 95% CI = 1.040–2.947), no awareness of AIDS knowledge (OR = 3.882, 95% CI = 2.371–6.356) and nPEP (OR = 4.788, 95% CI = 2.50–9.169) knowledge, were associated with the service acceptance of nPEP among the college students.ConclusionThe low acceptance of nPEP services was mainly affected by low level of nPEP knowledge among the college students. Further publicity and education of nPEP knowledge were necessary, as well as promotion of knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. More attention should be paid to the factors associated with acceptance of nPEP services.
Highlights
College students were the key group we should pay more attention for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) prevention and control in recent years in China
The newly reported human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) /AIDS cases among young people aged 15–24 increased from 8354 in 2008 to 16,307 in 2017, among which the proportion of students increased from 5.8% in 2008 to 18.9% in 2017, and the majority of the cases among college students were through male homosexual transmission, accounting for 57.9% [5]
The results suggested that the content of health education in college should adapt to the new situation as the number of newly reported HIV/ AIDS cases among college students increasing year by year, and the transmission route was mainly by male homosexual transmission, the prevention and control facing with more challenges in college [31]
Summary
College students were the key group we should pay more attention for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) prevention and control in recent years in China. The newly reported human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) /AIDS cases among young people aged 15–24 increased from 8354 in 2008 to 16,307 in 2017, among which the proportion of students increased from 5.8% in 2008 to 18.9% in 2017, and the majority of the cases among college students were through male homosexual transmission, accounting for 57.9% [5]. Since 2012, the newly reported HIV infection among college students through male homosexual transmission, has posed a challenge to HIV/AIDS prevention and control [7]. The main characteristics of HIV infection among young students were sexual transmission, and the majority of newly reported HIV infected was male, mainly through homosexual transmission [10, 11]
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