Young Women Sexual Behaviour and Self-Reported Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Northern Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Globally, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain a significant public health problem especially among young women. In Ethiopia, the prevalence of STDs among femal youths aged 15-24 years old continues to be a problem of young population. However, the factors associated with this problem is poorly studied. Thus, the purpose of this study is to assess sexual behavior and prevalence of STDs and factors associated among young women attending health facilities in Northern Ethiopia. Methods: A Facility-based cross-sectional study was employed among 326 young women aged 15 to 24 years from May 1 to 30, 2013. A multistage sampling technique was used to select young women attending outpatient facility. A pre-tested interviewer guided structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Data was entered, cleaned and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Bivariate and multivariate logistics regression analyses were done to identify the associated variables. A p-value of 0.05 with 95% CI were used as a cutoff point to examine the statistical association. Results: From the total of 326 sample, 305 young women were participated in this study with a response rate of 93.6%. The median age at first sex was 17 years (range 9-24 years). The prevalence of self-reported STDs in the last 12 months preceding the survey was 21.3%. One hundred fourteen (40.4%) of the young women had poor knowledge on STDs mode of transmission and prevention. Having two or more sex partners, not using condoms, poor knowledge on STDs mode of transimission and prevention, and a previous history of STDs were found to be significantly associated with self reported STDs. Conclusions: In this study the sexual behavior, not using condom and prevalence of STD was found to be high. Many young women had started early sexual contact and have poor utilization of condom. Hence, the youth friendly services, partner treatment and life skill communication with parents should be enhanced through the joint effort of all concerned stakeholders.