Background: Adolescent females having sex with partners who are drinking may be at-risk of STD/HIV infection.
Objective: Condom use frequency and unprotected vaginal sex (UVS) among adolescents who have and have not recently had sex with a partner when he was drinking was examined.
Methods: African American females (N=522) (14 - 18 years old) completed a self-report questionnaire and structured interview to assess condom use frequency, UVS, and whether or not adolescents had sex with a partner when he was drinking in the past 30 days.
Results: Adolescents who reported they had sex over the previous 30 days with a partner who was drinking (n=101) were more likely to engage in UVS (t=4.6, p=.0001), more likely to engage in any UVS (regardless of alcohol intake) (PR=2.7; CI=2.10 - 3.54; p=.0001) and more likely to report never using condoms (PR=1.6; CI=1.1 - 2.23; p=.016) than young women who did not report this behavior (n=421).
Discussion: These study findings suggest that young girls who engaged in sexual activity with partners who were drinking were more likely to report risky sexual behaviors. Thus, alcohol use and unprotected sexual activity may be more likely to co-occur when the partner is drinking. Information from this study can be used to guide the development of health promotion/disease prevention programs for adolescents.
Learning Objectives: At the end of this conference session, the participants will be able to: 1) identify key characteristics of adolescent risk behavior; and 2) describe the relationship between unprotected vaginal sex and sexual risk when the sexual partner is under the influence of alcohol
Keywords: Alcohol Use, Sexual Risk Behavior
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.