University Students Sexual Practices- An Insight Overview

Abstract

Background: Sexually transmitted infections are an ever growing concern in developing countries. In Pakistan it has been an estimated 97,000 (0.1%) reported cases of HIV alone. Dearth of available information has made it difficult to assess the full extent of the STI problem. A reason for this shortage of data has been attributed to lack of awareness and research. This study aimed to evaluate the sexual practices of students in Karachi. Methodology: This cross sectional study was conducted at four colleges in Karachi, Pakistan. College students were included without any restriction of age and gender. Ethical approval was obtained from all institutions. Self-administered questionnaire was used to access the knowledge and practices of students regarding Sexually transmitted diseases. Frequencies and percentage were calculated for each variable. Results: In total 890 university students participated in this study with a response rate of 89%. Overall male participants were 515, while 375 females participated in the study. Almost 30% of the male and 49.6% of the female students knew that there is a vaccine for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) with Male/Female Odds ratio of 0.42( 95% C.I: 1.34-28). However 22.9% of male and 76.5% of female students (M/F OR: 0.29, 95% C.I: 0.34-0.7) believed that the oral sex is as threatening and unsafe as vaginal or anal sex. The most preferred method of contraceptive recognized by the students was condoms (males 14.7 % and females 8.6%, with M/F OR: 1.70, 95% C.I: 0.29-0.67) followed by oral contraceptive pills (males 6.2 %, females 7.7%, M/F OR: 0.80, 95% C.I: 0.72-24.3). Conclusion: Research needs to be undertaken to employ policies at an administrative level to introduce change in the curriculum and rectify related issues in order to conceive better sexual practices in adolescents.