Department of Community Health and Primary Care, College of Medicine, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, University of Lagos, Lagos.
Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med. 2020 Apr 21;12(1):e1-e7. doi: 10.4102/phcfm.v12i1.2221.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are of public health importance as over 1 million STIs are acquired daily worldwide. One-third of the new cases of curable STIs affect younger persons aged less than 25 years. Sexually transmitted infections can lead to severe complications beyond the immediate impact of infections as such.
This study assessed knowledge of, attitude towards and preventive practices of STI among young unmarried persons in Surulere local government area (LGA) of Lagos State, Nigeria.
The study was conducted among young unmarried persons in Surulere LGA, Lagos State, Nigeria, between June and November 2018.
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 450 young unmarried persons selected using a multistage sampling technique. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to obtain data. Analysis was carried out with Epi-Info 7.2.2.2 software. Chi-square was used to test for associations. Level of significance was at p ≤ 0.05.
The mean age was 19.9 + 2.5 years. Majority of the respondents (84.7%) had heard of STIs. About two-third (65.6%) had good knowledge, while majority (98.6%) had good attitude towards the prevention of STIs, but less than half (34.0%) had good preventive practices. Knowledge of STI was statistically significantly associated with age, level of education, attitude and preventive practices of the respondents.
Most of the respondents were aware and had good attitude towards prevention of STI, but gaps exist in knowledge and preventive practices. Hence, targeted education to improve the knowledge and preventive practices against STI among young unmarried persons is recommended.
性传播感染（STIs）对公共卫生具有重要意义，因为全球每天有超过 100 万例 STIs 被感染。新感染的可治愈性 STIs 中有三分之一影响年龄小于 25 岁的年轻人。性传播感染可能导致严重的并发症，超出了感染的直接影响。
本研究评估了尼日利亚拉各斯州苏拉雷地方政府区（LGA）年轻未婚者对性传播感染的知识、态度和预防措施。
该研究于 2018 年 6 月至 11 月在尼日利亚拉各斯州苏拉雷 LGA 的年轻未婚者中进行。
采用多阶段抽样技术，对 450 名年轻未婚者进行了描述性横断面研究。使用访谈者管理的问卷收集数据。使用 Epi-Info 7.2.2.2 软件进行分析。卡方检验用于检验关联。显著性水平为 p ≤ 0.05。
平均年龄为 19.9 + 2.5 岁。大多数受访者（84.7%）听说过 STIs。大约三分之二（65.6%）有良好的知识，而大多数（98.6%）对预防 STIs 的态度良好，但只有不到一半（34.0%）有良好的预防措施。STI 知识与受访者的年龄、教育水平、态度和预防措施呈统计学显著相关。
大多数受访者对预防 STI 有一定的认识并持有良好的态度，但在知识和预防措施方面存在差距。因此，建议针对年轻未婚者开展有针对性的教育，以提高他们对 STI 的知识和预防措施。
