Condom use among patients attending six sexually transmitted disease clinics in Switzerland

Abstract

Background and objectives: Persons treated for a sexually transmitted disease have been shown to be at increased risk for human immunodeficiency virus infection. Levels of condom use among these patients are presented, and sociodemographic and behavioral factors associated with self-reported never use of condoms are analyzed.

Study design: This was a cross-sectional study of 2,257 patients treated at six sexually transmitted disease clinics in Switzerland between July 1990 and December 1992.

Results: Overall, 46.3% of the patients reported that they had never used condoms. Among heterosexual men, this level was 48.3% (n = 1,751), among homosexual and bisexual men it was 21.6% (n = 268), and among heterosexual women it was 60.1% (n = 238). In a logistic multivariate regression analysis, factors significantly associated with never use of condoms among heterosexual men included age over 29 years, not of Swiss origin, low level of education, few partners in the previous 6 months, contraction of the sexually transmitted disease from a stable partner, and not being an injecting drug user.

Conclusion: These results document the high levels of condoms never being used in this population and highlight the importance of condom promotion activities provided by sexually transmitted disease clinics.

PIP: Persons treated at sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics have been shown to be at increased risk for infection with HIV. On the basis of a cross-sectional survey, levels of condom use among 2257 patients treated at six STD clinics in Switzerland between July 1990 and December 1992 are presented, and sociodemographic and behavioral factors associated with self-reported never use of condoms analyzed. The patients were treated at the five university polyclinics of dermatology of Basel, Bern, Lausanne, Geneva, and Zurich, and the city polyclinic of dermatology of Zurich. All were attending the clinic with a new episode of at least one selected STD and had not been seen for any STD within the previous 90 days. There were 1751 self-reported heterosexual men, 268 homosexual or bisexual men, and 238 heterosexual women. 46.3% of the patients reported that they had never used condoms. Among heterosexual men, that level was 48.3%, among homosexual and bisexual men it was 21.6%,, and among heterosexual women it was 60.1%. Factors significantly associated with never use of condoms among heterosexual men included age over 29 years, not of Swiss origin, low level of education, few partners in the preceding six months, contraction of the sexually transmitted disease from a stable partner, and not being an injecting drug user. These findings highlight the importance of condom promotion activities provided by STD clinics.