Kubahoniyesu Theogene, Namalinzi Florence
African Centre of Excellence in Data Science, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda.
Research, Innovation and Data Science, Rwanda Biomedical Center, Kigali, Rwanda.
Int J Womens Health. 2024 Nov 28;16:2011-2023. doi: 10.2147/IJWH.S482932. eCollection 2024.
Understanding the timing of first sexual experience is crucial for informing reproductive health policies and interventions. However, little is known about this area of research in Rwanda. This study aims to estimate the determinants of time to first sexual experience among female youths in Rwanda.
A secondary data analysis of the Rwanda Demographic and Health Survey (RDHS 2019-2020) was conducted. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox proportional hazards regression models were utilized to estimate the median age at first sexual experience and identify significant determinants; a significance level of 0.05 was considered. All analyses were performed using R (Version 4.3.3).
The study found that 2090 (36.9%) of female youths in Rwanda had their first sexual experience before the age of 25, with 7.0% initiating sexual activity before 15. The median age at first sexual experience was 18 years (Interquartile range: 16-19). Determinants associated with a reduced hazard of early first sexual experience included being aged 20-24 years (75%) (AHR = 0.25, 95% CI: 0.23-0.29), living in rural areas (15%) (AHR = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.74-0.99), having tertiary education (38%) (AHR = 0.62, 95% CI: 0.42-0.90), being married (AHR = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.42-0.56), and listening to the radio at least once a week (13%) (AHR = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.76-0.99).
Enhancing educational opportunities, promoting stable partnerships, and increasing access to media information in rural areas may be effective strategies in delaying first sexual experience.
了解首次性行为的时间对于制定生殖健康政策和干预措施至关重要。然而，卢旺达在这一研究领域的了解甚少。本研究旨在估计卢旺达女性青年首次性行为时间的决定因素。
对卢旺达人口与健康调查（2019 - 2020年）进行二次数据分析。采用Kaplan - Meier生存曲线和Cox比例风险回归模型来估计首次性行为的中位年龄并确定显著的决定因素；显著性水平设定为0.05。所有分析均使用R（版本4.3.3）进行。
研究发现，卢旺达2090名（36.9%）女性青年在25岁之前有过首次性行为，其中7.0%在15岁之前开始性行为。首次性行为的中位年龄为18岁（四分位间距：16 - 19岁）。与首次性行为过早风险降低相关的决定因素包括年龄在20 - 24岁（75%）（调整后风险比[AHR]=0.25，95%置信区间[CI]：0.23 - 0.29）、居住在农村地区（15%）（AHR = 0.85，95% CI：0.74 - 0.99）、接受过高等教育（38%）（AHR = 0.62，95% CI：0.42 - 0.90）、已婚（AHR = 0.49，95% CI：0.42 - 0.56）以及每周至少收听一次广播（13%）（AHR = 0.87，95% CI：0.76 - 0.99）。
增加教育机会、促进稳定伴侣关系以及改善农村地区获取媒体信息的渠道可能是延迟首次性行为的有效策略。
