Sex education and self-poisoning in Sri Lanka: an explorative analysis

BMC Public Health

Lalith Senarathna¹  Sonali Gunasekera²  Ayodhya Malalagama³  Duleeka Knipe⁴  Grace Crowley⁵  Thilini Rajapakse⁶  Piumee Bandara⁷ 

[1] Department of Health Promotion, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka, Mihintale, Sri Lanka;Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka, Colombo, Sri Lanka;Mental Health Unit, Bundaberg Hospital, Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia;Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK;South Asian Clinical Toxicology Research Collaboration, Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka;Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK;South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK;South Asian Clinical Toxicology Research Collaboration, Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka;Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka;South Asian Clinical Toxicology Research Collaboration, Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka;Translational Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University, New South Wales, Australia;

关键词: Self-poisoning;    Self-harm;    Suicidal behaviour;    Sex education;    Sri-Lanka;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-021-12374-4

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundSelf-harm and suicide are important causes of morbidity and mortality in Sri Lanka, but our understanding of these behaviours is limited. Qualitative studies have implicated familial and societal expectations around sex and relationships. We conducted an explorative analysis using case-control data to investigate the association between sex education and self-poisoning in Sri Lanka.MethodsCases (N=298) were self-poisoning inpatients on a toxicology ward, Teaching Hospital Peradeniya. Controls (N=500) were sex and age frequency matched to cases and were outpatients/visitors to the same hospital. Participants were asked whether they had received sex education, and to rate the quality and usefulness of any sex education received. Logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, and religion quantified the association between receipt, quality and usefulness of sex education and self-poisoning. We tested whether the associations differed by sex.ResultsRoughly 1-in-3 cases and 1-in-5 controls reported having not received sex education. Individuals who did not receive sex education were nearly twice as likely to have self-poisoned than those who did (OR 1.68 (95% CI 1.11-2.55)). Those who reported the sex education they received as not useful were more likely to have self-poisoned compared to those who reported it useful (OR 1.95 (95% CI 1.04-3.65)). We found no evidence of an association between self-poisoning and the self-rated quality of sex education, or that associations differed by participant sex.ConclusionAs sex education is potentially modifiable at the population-level, further research should aim to explore this association in more depth, using qualitative methods and validated measurement tools.

【 授权许可】

CC BY