Students and condoms.

Abstract

To the Editor. This letter is in response to the article “Students' Acquisition and Use of School Condoms in a High School Condom Availability Program,” published in the October 1997 issue of Pediatrics. As the authors stated in their introduction, the purpose of condom distribution is to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and reduce the number of pregnancies among high school students. That is a noble and worthwhile task, but I'm not sure how this study gave any information on the success of school condom distribution and its impact on STDs and pregnancy. Yes, students took condoms from the school; yes, some of them used them, but in order to make an impact on STDs and pregnancy, students must use a condom each and every time of sexual activity. The frequency of condom use, which should have been the main question addressed in this study, was not even asked! If you're not going to try to address the importance of 100% condom use, what is the point of knowing how the students liked the program and whether the condoms they used were from the school, or elsewhere, or not …