Langille Donald B, Flowerdew Gordon, Aquino-Russell Catherine, Strang Robert, Proudfoot Kathryn, Forward Kevin
Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 1V7, Canada.
Sex Health. 2009 Mar;6(1):11-4. doi: 10.1071/sh08041.
Chlamydia is the most prevalent sexually transmissible infection (STI) in Canadian adolescents. STI account for 20% of cases of infertility in Canada and 42% of ectopic pregnancies are attributable to previous chlamydia infection. Despite the importance of this infection, little is understood about young people's knowledge of it.
A survey was conducted at a rural high school in Nova Scotia, Canada, to assess students' knowledge of chlamydia and associations of knowledge with gender and protective behaviours. Knowledge was assessed using true-false responses to 15 statements about chlamydia. Each statement was examined for differences in the percentage of correct responses by sex. Correct responses were summed, creating a knowledge score. Socioeconomic status variables and age were included in multivariate regression models to determine if they modified associations between knowledge score and protective behaviours seen in simple regression.
Eighty-six percent of registered students (n = 538) participated in the survey. Girls responded to 10 of the 15 knowledge statements significantly more often than boys. Respondents were least knowledgeable about their rights to confidential health services for chlamydia infection. Knowledge score was associated with use of both condoms and oral contraception at last intercourse in girls (odds ratio 1.15; 95% confidence interval 1.01-1.31). No association of knowledge score was seen with having had an STI test in the previous year.
School sexual health programs should make special efforts to meet the needs of male students, and programs and health professionals should include information about the confidential nature of sexual health services for adolescents.
衣原体感染是加拿大青少年中最常见的性传播感染（STI）。性传播感染占加拿大不孕症病例的20%，42%的宫外孕可归因于先前的衣原体感染。尽管这种感染很重要，但对于年轻人对其的了解却知之甚少。
在加拿大新斯科舍省的一所农村高中进行了一项调查，以评估学生对衣原体的了解以及知识与性别和保护行为之间的关联。通过对15条关于衣原体的陈述进行是非判断来评估知识。检查每条陈述中按性别划分的正确回答百分比的差异。将正确回答相加，得出知识得分。社会经济地位变量和年龄被纳入多变量回归模型，以确定它们是否改变了简单回归中所见的知识得分与保护行为之间的关联。
86%的注册学生（n = 538）参与了调查。女孩对15条知识陈述中的10条的回答明显比男孩更频繁。受访者对衣原体感染的保密健康服务权利了解最少。在女孩中，知识得分与上次性交时使用避孕套和口服避孕药有关（优势比1.15；95%置信区间1.01 - 1.31）。未发现知识得分与上一年是否进行过性传播感染检测之间存在关联。
学校性健康项目应特别努力满足男学生的需求，项目和健康专业人员应纳入有关青少年性健康服务保密性的信息。
