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  • Title: Sexual behaviour and HIV knowledge among adolescent boys in Zimbabwe.
    Author: Campbell B, Mbizvo MT.
    Journal: Cent Afr J Med; 1994 Sep; 40(9):245-50. PubMed ID: 7834713.
    Abstract:
    A study on sexual behaviour and knowledge of HIV risk was undertaken amongst 511 male students in Zimbabwe. The study was conducted amongst pupils aged 11 to 19 years drawn from urban and rural secondary schools using a self-administered questionnaire. Thirty seven pc of the students reported that they had experienced sexual intercourse, with up to 63 pc reporting having had more than one partner. Twenty one pc of boys aged 12 years reported having had intercourse and the proportion increased with age. Knowledge about AIDS was high (93 pc) with up to 75 pc of the boys reporting that they received the information through the media and only 31 pc got it from their teachers. Logistic regression used to analyse reasons for variation in HIV/AIDS knowledge and of modes of its transmission determined that educational level, actual school attended, access to information from magazines and educational aspirations were significant predictors (p values = 0,005) of knowledge. Individual risk assessment was higher amongst students who reported sexual experience (p = 0,0001). Sixty pc of the sexually experienced boys reported having used condoms. Six pc of the boys reported having intercourse with a commercial sex worker and of these, 85 pc used condoms. Compared with previous studies there appeared to be a reduction in high risk behaviours amongst male secondary school students. However, there is need for increased HIV preventive information through school educational programmes, as increase and variation in HIV information and modes of transmission was seen depending on access to information. Data were gathered through self-administered questionnaires on sex behavior and knowledge of HIV risk from 511 adolescent males aged 11-19 years who attended 2 urban and 2 rural secondary schools in Zimbabwe. Over 40% of the boys reported having experienced intercourse (increasing from 21% of the 12-year-olds to 43.5% of the oldest boys). 63% of these experienced boys had more than 1 sexual partner (range 1-15, average 3). 6% of the boys had sex with a prostitute. 72% of the boys had received information about HIV/AIDS in the past month, mainly from the news media. Overall knowledge about AIDS transmission was high, with 85% understanding that it can be transmitted sexually; however, only 33% were aware that an infected individual could be asymptomatic. Regression analysis showed that AIDS knowledge was affected by which school the students attended. This difference was not explained by the reported frequency of receiving information from teachers or by socioeconomic factors. 50% of the boys rated having only 1 sex partner as an effective AIDS prevention measure; 46% thought condom use was effective; 30% believed abstinence was very effective; and 6% believed nothing could stop AIDS. The boys assessed their personal risk according to whether or not they had sexual experience and whether or not they used condoms. 60% of the sexually active boys reported condom use, and this rate increased with age. Also, 85% of the 22 boys who had sex with a prostitute used a condom. Comparison of these results with those of a survey taken before an AIDS awareness campaign suggest that the campaign may have influenced changes in sex behavior. While the amount of sexual activity was comparable, the incidence of high-risk behavior was lower in the present study. Both surveys pointed to misconceptions which remain to be addressed about transmission through casual contact and by mosquitos.
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