Sexual behaviors and condom use in the Brazilian population: analysis of the National Health Survey, 2019.

Mariana Santos Felisbino-Mendes,Deborah Carvalho Malta,Maria Lúcia França Pontes Vieira,Fernanda Gontijo Araújo,Nádia Machado De Vasconcelos,Laís Vanessa Assunção Oliveira

doi:10.1590/1980-549720210018.supl.2

Mariana Santos Felisbino-Mendes, Deborah Carvalho Malta + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-549720210018.supl.2

Copy DOI

Abstract

The objective of this research was to describe the sexual behaviors and condom use in the Brazilian population. This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study, which used data from 88,531 individuals aged 18 years old or older, who answered the second edition of the National Health Survey carried out in 2019. Prevalence was estimated with the respective 95% confidence intervals for each sexual behavior indicator and condom use according to gender, age, race/skin color, educational level, and region of residence. The majority of the Brazilian population has had sexual intercourse at some point in their lives (93.9%). Mean age of initiation was 17.3 years. Prevalence of consistent condom use was only 22.8%, being even lower among women (20.9%). Moreover, 59% of the population reported not having used a condom in the past 12 months, the main reason being trusting their partner (73.4%). The use of health services to obtain condoms was only 10.7%. It was observed that women, individuals with a higher age group, less education, and income had worse results in relation to the analyzed indicators, in addition to regional disparities. Low prevalence of condom use was observed in the Brazilian population. In addition, important socioeconomic and demographic disparities were observed, pointing out the need to revisit, strengthen and expand public policies in the sexual and reproductive health field in order to prevent risky sexual behaviors and promote condom use, including double protection.

Highlights

Brazil has remaining challenges in the field of sexual and reproductive health, such as syphilis, the cesarean rate, prematurity, and neonatal mortality[1]
The average age of sexual initiation in the Brazilian population aged 18 years old or older was 17.3 years, and the average age at first sexual intercourse was lower among men (16.4 years) (Table 1), observing maintenance of this pattern for all regions
The results show that only one in five Brazilians used a condom in all sexual relations, while more than half of the population with a sexual life did not use a condom in any relation in the 12 months prior to the survey

Summary

Introduction

Brazil has remaining challenges in the field of sexual and reproductive health, such as syphilis, the cesarean rate, prematurity, and neonatal mortality[1]. Other important public health problems to be faced in this field are the increase[6] and maintenance[7] of teenage pregnancy rates Added to all this are the growing rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which are increasingly occurring in the younger population, especially the human immunodeficiency virus — HIV/AIDS. Comparing AIDS detection rates between 2008 and 2018, there was an increase in young male populations between 15 and years of age, which went from 3.7 to 6.0/100 thousand inhabitants; between and years from 18.4 to 35.8 /100 thousand inhabitants; and between and 29 years from 41 to 50.9/100 thousand inhabitants[8]. The same has been observed for other diseases such as chlamydia and gonorrhea[10]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion