How safe is sex with condoms? An in-depth investigation of the condom use pattern during the last sex act in an urban area of Bangladesh

The policy of condom intervention is based on achieving ejaculation inside a condom, a "mechanical" goal of sexual interaction. However, most research on condom use has focused upon a simplistic reliance on survey results of condom use during the last sex act. Interviews with 20 hotel-based female sex workers and 15 (male) clients were conducted to explore patterns of claimed condom use during the last sex act. The Health Belief Model guided this study and was found deficient in providing an understanding of condom use. The clients' (male) perceptions of sexuality and "the male's right" to engage in sexual intercourse in commercial settings increased condom use. The invisibility of AIDS reduced participants' perceived susceptibility to and severity of suffering from the disease, while using condoms at any time during intercourse was perceived as being beneficial. Condom interventions need to be based on deeper understanding of the complexity of people's lives

Microdevices for extensional rheometry of low viscosity elastic liquids : a review

Extensional flows and the underlying stability/instability mechanisms are of extreme relevance to the efficient operation of inkjet printing, coating processes and drug delivery systems, as well as for the generation of micro droplets. The development of an extensional rheometer to characterize the extensional properties of low viscosity fluids has therefore stimulated great interest of researchers, particularly in the last decade. Microfluidics has proven to be an extraordinary working platform and different configurations of potential extensional microrheometers have been proposed. In this review, we present an overview of several successful designs, together with a critical assessment of their capabilities and limitations

Formulation, characterisation and flexographic printing of novel Boger fluids to assess the effects of ink elasticity on print uniformity

Model elastic inks were formulated, rheologically characterised in shear and extension, and printed via flexography to assess the impact of ink elasticity on print uniformity. Flexography is a roll-to-roll printing process with great potential in the mass production of printed electronics for which understanding layer uniformity and the influence of rheology is of critical importance. A new set of flexo-printable Boger fluids was formulated by blending polyvinyl alcohol and high molecular weight polyacrylamide to provide inks of varying elasticity. During print trials, the phenomenon of viscous fingering was observed in all prints, with those of the Newtonian ink exhibiting a continuous striping in the printing direction. Increasing elasticity significantly influenced this continuity, disrupting it and leading to a quantifiable decrease in the overall relative size of the printed finger features. As such, ink elasticity was seen to have a profound effect on flexographic printing uniformity, showing the rheological tuning of inks may be a route to obtaining specific printed features

Men who have sex with men's sexual relations with women in Bangladesh

Studies of men who have sex with men in South Asian countries including Bangladesh have tended to focus mainly on measuring male‐to‐male sexual risk behaviours, with less attention being given to understanding the nature and meaning of their sexual relations with women. This can result in missed opportunities for HIV/AIDS‐related intervention. This paper, based on a small scale qualitative study, attempts to develop a cultural model to understand men who have sex with men\u27s sexual relations with women within a gender and masculinity framework. Findings reveal that in Bangladesh men who have sex with men frequently surrender to societal pressures to marry, become husbands and shoulder fatherhood. This forces some women to become the silent sufferers of some of the negative consequences of hetero‐normative patriarchal practice. Importantly, however, men who have sex with men consider sex with women a form of real sex within a framework of masculine sexual potency irrespective of preference, desire or eroticism. Thus, challenges exist to undertaking sexual health promotion and HIV/AIDS prevention in culturally sensitive ways

Safer sex or pleasurable sex? Rethinking condom use in the AIDS era

Background: Condom use in Bangladesh is low despite nationwide family planning initiatives and HIV interventions. Methods: Fifty men aged between 18 and 55 years from diverse socio-demographic backgrounds and five key informants were interviewed in a qualitative male sexuality study. Results: Refusal to use condoms is not only a personal choice, but pertains to relationships. The meanings of reduced bodily pleasure associated with condom use are socially constructed. Men's emotions and trust expressed through understanding of direct penile-vaginal contact and ejaculation inside the vagina as 'pure' and 'natural' sex oppose condom use. Sexual prowess in the form of prolonged intercourse without condoms, as depicted in Western pornography, was perceived as a 'real man's' sexual skill. Men sought to preserve a 'good man's' image by avoiding condoms, which symbolised promiscuous men in AIDS educational mesages. Conclusion: Social dimensions of masculine sexuality, pleasure, eroticism and the emotional aspect of men's lives have to be addressed for effective condom promotion