Study objective

Rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the United States have increased for the sixth consecutive year. Young people ages 15-24 account for over half of all new infections despite comprising only a quarter of the sexually active population. A potential explanation for this is the increased use of long-acting reversible contraceptives, (LARCs) which could result in lower condom use and/or increased sexual risk-taking due to higher pregnancy prevention efficacy.

Design

This paper uses the National Survey of Family Growth to examine the relationship between primary contraceptive method use among young women ages 15-24 and STI treatment in the past year, as well as the extent to which this association is mediated by relationship status and frequency of condom use.

Results

Findings did not show differences in STI treatment in the past year by primary contraceptive method, indicating that LARC use among young women does not equate to increased STI risk. Findings did show that young women who had been in casual-only relationships or a mix of relationship types in the past year were more likely to have been treated for an STI than young women in serious or dating-only relationships, regardless of the primary method used. Additionally, young women who used condoms “some” of the time were more likely to have been treated for an STI compared with women who used condoms “all” or “most” of the time. This association was mediated by relationship status (P = .05).

Conclusion

Findings suggest that efforts to address the growing STI burden should be directed at providing comprehensive, gender-equitable sexual health education that enables young people to engage in healthy relationships and consistent condom use.

中文翻译：

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具有全国代表性的年轻女性样本中的主要避孕方法使用和性传播感染

学习目标

美国的性传播感染率 (STI) 连续第六年上升。尽管仅占性活跃人口的四分之一，但 15-24 岁的年轻人占所有新感染病例的一半以上。对此的一个潜在解释是长效可逆避孕药（LARCs）的使用增加，这可能导致避孕套使用量减少和/或由于更高的怀孕预防功效而增加性风险。

设计

本文使用全国家庭成长调查来检查过去一年 15-24 岁年轻女性的主要避孕方法使用与性传播感染治疗之间的关系，以及这种关联在多大程度上受关系状态和频率的调节。使用避孕套。

结果

调查结果未显示过去一年通过主要避孕方法治疗 STI 的差异，表明年轻女性使用 LARC 并不等同于增加 STI 风险。研究结果确实表明，在过去一年中处于仅休闲关系或混合关系类型的年轻女性比处于严肃或仅约会关系的年轻女性更有可能接受 STI 治疗，无论主要方法如何用过的。此外，与“全部”或“大部分”时间使用安全套的女性相比，“有时”使用安全套的年轻女性更有可能接受 STI 治疗。这种关联是由关系状态介导的（P  = .05）。

结论

调查结果表明，解决日益严重的性传播感染负担的努力应着眼于提供全面的、性别平等的性健康教育，使年轻人能够建立健康的关系并始终如一地使用安全套。