Sexual behaviour of women in rural South Africa: a descriptive study

BMC Public Health

Research Article

Nontembeko Mbambazela¹  Geoffrey A. Jobson¹  Lisette van der Eem²  Helen E. Struthers³  Jan Henk Dubbink⁴  James A. McIntyre⁵  Sander Ouburg⁶  Remco P. H. Peters⁷  Servaas A. Morre⁸ 

[1] Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;Department of Medical Microbiology & Infection Control, Laboratory of Immunogenetics, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands;Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;Division of Infectious Diseases & HIV Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa;Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;Institute for Public Health Genomics (IPHG), Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, Research School GROW (School for Oncology & Developmental Biology), Faculty of Health, Medicine & Life Sciences, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands;Department of Medical Microbiology & Infection Control, Laboratory of Immunogenetics, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands;Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa;Department of Medical Microbiology & Infection Control, Laboratory of Immunogenetics, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands;Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa;Anova Health Institute, Johannesburg, Tzaneen, South Africa;Department of Medical Microbiology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, The Netherlands;Anova Health Institute, PostNet Suite 242, Private Bag X30500, 2041, Houghton, Johannesburg, South Africa;Institute for Public Health Genomics (IPHG), Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, Research School GROW (School for Oncology & Developmental Biology), Faculty of Health, Medicine & Life Sciences, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands;Department of Medical Microbiology & Infection Control, Laboratory of Immunogenetics, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands;

关键词: Sexual behaviour;    Age;    Ethnic group;    HIV;    Women;    Rural;    South Africa;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-016-3207-6

 received in 2015-09-20, accepted in 2016-06-23,  发布年份 2016

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundSexual behaviour is a core determinant of the HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) epidemics in women living in rural South Africa. Knowledge of sexual behaviour in these areas is limited, but constitutes essential information for a combination prevention approach of behavioural change and biomedical interventions.MethodsThis descriptive study was conducted in rural Mopani District, South Africa, as part of a larger study on STI. Women of reproductive age (18–49 years) who reported sexual activity were included regardless of the reason for visiting the facility. Questionnaires were administered to 570 women. We report sexual behaviour by age group, ethnic group and self-reported HIV status.ResultsYoung women (<25 years) were more likely to visit bars, practice fellatio, have concurrent sexual partners and report a circumcised partner than older women (>34 years); there was no difference for condom use during last sex act (36 % overall). Sotho women were more likely to report concurrent sexual partners whereas Shangaan women reported more frequent intravaginal cleansing and vaginal scarring practice in our analysis. HIV-infected women were older, had a higher number of lifetime sexual partners, reported more frequent condom use during the last sex act and were more likely to have a known HIV-infected partner than women without HIV infection; hormonal contraceptive use, fellatio, and a circumcised partner were less often reported.ConclusionsThis study provides insight into women’s sexual behaviour in a rural South African region. There are important differences in sexual behaviour by age group and ethnicity and HIV status; these should be taken into account when designing tailor-made prevention packages.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2016