Prevalence and risk behaviors for chlamydial infection in a population-based study of female adolescents in Brazil

Made available in DSpace on 2010-08-23T16:58:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 Landmann_Prevalence and Risk_2004.pdf: 169766 bytes, checksum: 5424672e8099a5f43bbe1499046c534f (MD5) license.txt: 1842 bytes, checksum: d61d783df8d1dca90c51f1da7e5a38e8 (MD5) Landmann_Prevalence and Risk_2004.pdf.txt: 26603 bytes, checksum: 7a717de7c0c1981d7dd3a422fa6b4f92 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2004Made available in DSpace on 2010-11-04T14:19:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 3 Landmann_Prevalence and Risk_2004.pdf.txt: 26603 bytes, checksum: 7a717de7c0c1981d7dd3a422fa6b4f92 (MD5) license.txt: 1842 bytes, checksum: d61d783df8d1dca90c51f1da7e5a38e8 (MD5) Landmann_Prevalence and Risk_2004.pdf: 169766 bytes, checksum: 5424672e8099a5f43bbe1499046c534f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2004Funding for this study was provided by FACITEC (Fundo de Apoio a Ciência e Tecnologia), Vitória Municipality, UNESCO: Projeto 914 BRA 3016, 5° termo aditivo acordo Brasil-França and from the NIH/Fogarty Centers ICOHORTA Grant (1 D43 TW05799–03).Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil / Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo. Núcleo de Doenças Infecciosas. Vitoria, ES, Brasil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto de Comunicação e Informação Científica e Tecnologia em Saúde. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo. Núcleo de Doenças Infecciosas. Vitoria, ES, Brasil.University of California. Center for AIDS Prevention Studies. San Francisco, USA.Background: Adolescents are vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unplanned pregnancy. Prevention measures and assistance are of significant public health importance in this population. Objective: The objective of this study was to identify demographic, behavioral, and clinical factors for STIs and to determine the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection (CT) among female adolescents in Vito´ria, Brazil. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study among female adolescents (15–19 years) served by the Health Family Program. Participants were screened for CT and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) using ligase chain reaction applied to urine and answered a face-to-face questionnaire to assess demographic, behavioral, and clinical factors. All participants and their parents signed the informed consent. Results: Four hundred sixty-four young women were sampled. The prevalence of CT was 8.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 6.5–11.9%) overall. Among sexually active women, CT and gonorrhea prevalence were 12.2 (95% CI, 9.4–17.0%) and 1.9% (95% CI, 1.1–2.7%), respectively. Previously diagnosed STI was reported by 12.8%. Women who reported regular condom use and having condoms at home were significantly less likely to have CT, and having never purchased condoms was significantly associated with a positive CT result. Conclusion: A high prevalence of CT was found in this population, and behavioral risk was high despite readily available STI prevention information. Women who reported positive condom use behaviors were less likely to have CT. These results demonstrate the need for ongoing STI prevention activities, including STI screening and continued successful risk reduction activities such as condom use to further decrease CT and other STI among adolescents

AIDS AND BEHAVIOR

Acesso restrito: Texto completo. p. S17-S24To determine the prevalence of sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections among incarcerated adolescents in Salvador, Brazil, we interviewed 300 incarcerated youth aged 11–18 years to participate in a physical examination and to provide a blood sample to test for HIV-1, hepatitis B and C viruses exposure, human T-cells lymphotrophic virus, and syphilis. Overall prevalence was anti-HIV, 0.34%; anti-HBc, 11.1%; HBsAg, 2.4%; anti-HCV, 6.4%; HTLV, 1.09%; and syphilis, 3.4%. The majority (86.3%) reported a history of sexual activity; 27% had never used condoms. Girls also reported previous pregnancy (35%), abortion (26%) and sexual abuse (74%). Many youth reported a family history of alcohol abuse (56%), illicit drug use (24.7%), or legal problems (38%). Serological results show that youth in Salvador are at high risk for blood-borne and sexually transmitted infections. Policies to reduce the risk and impact of these infections should be a requisite part of health care for incarcerated youth

AIDS AND BEHAVIOR

Acesso restrito: Texto completo. p. S54-S62We conducted a randomized trial to test an intervention aimed at increasing adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) among HIV-positive, ART-naı¨ve patients in Salvador, Brazil. Participants (N = 107) were randomized to either educational workshops based on the informationmotivation- behavioral skills model (n = 52) or a control video session (n = 55). Changes in self-reported ART adherence, viral load, CD4 cell counts and ART pharmacy records were measured periodically over 12 months. After 3–6 months, ART adherence (C95%) was 77.8% in the workshop group and 85.7% in video group (as treated) and 53.8% and 65.5%, respectively, using intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis (both P[0.05) At 9–12 months, ART adherence decreased to 73.7% in the workshop group and 79.1% in the video group (as treated) and 53.8% and 61.8% using ITT, respectively. No differences were found in selfreported adherence, viral load or pharmacy records between groups. We found that the educational workshop intervention does not increase adherence to ART