Sexual health education often focuses on prevention of sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies, but the decision to engage in sexual activity is equally important. This cross-sectional study examined the decisions of college students (n = 422) to engage in oral sex, vaginal sex, and other sexual behaviors. Regression analyses…

Set against trans- or supra-national policy initiatives which have framed the HIV/AIDS pandemic as in part a pedagogical issue, this paper critically explores local understandings of sexual practices (generally) as well as of HIV/AIDS (more specifically) among young people in the sub-Saharan African country of Ethiopia. Ethiopia has the third…

Crack and cocaine use among adults has been associated with co-occurring psychiatric disorders as well as other drug use and unprotected sex. However, this issue is relatively unstudied in adolescents. This study collected data from 282 adolescents (mean age = 14.9 years) treated in intensive psychiatric treatment settings to understand the…

Context: Provision of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care in rural areas has encountered unique barriers. Purpose: To compare medical outcomes of care provided at 3 HIV specialty clinics in rural Vermont with that provided at an urban HIV specialty clinic. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study. Findings: Over an 11-year period 363 new…

The goal of this paper, "National Sexuality Education Standards: Core Content and Skills, K-12," is to provide clear, consistent and straightforward guidance on the "essential minimum, core content" for sexuality education that is developmentally and age-appropriate for students in grades K-12. The development of these standards is a result of an…

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. Population-based data on these behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth nationwide. Reporting…

Indonesia has one of the fastest growing, injecting drugs user-driven, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemics in Asia. Coverage of needle and syringe programs (NSPs), opioid substitution therapy (OST), and antiretroviral treatment (ART) is increasing, but is still low, whereas professional training in addiction medicine is not yet…

This article reports the characteristics of Latino day laborers who have sex with female commercial sex workers (CSWs). A sample of 450 day laborers in Los Angeles was used. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of independent variables with the likelihood of having sex with a CSW. Overall, 26% of the 450 day…

Background: This study examines the relationship between sexual behavior, alcohol use, and indicators of psychosocial distress (mental health) of adolescents in 6 sub-Saharan African countries using the Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS). Methods: The sample consisted of 22,949 adolescents from Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, Uganda,…

Evidence-based interventions (EBIs) are used in public health to prevent HIV infection among youth and other groups. EBIs include core elements, features that are thought to be responsible for the efficacy of interventions. The authors evaluate experiences of organizations that adopted an HIV-prevention EBI, Focus on Kids (FOK), and their fidelity…

There is an urgent need for continued innovation in the design of HIV/STI prevention interventions for African American females, a group at high risk for STIs and HIV. In particular, attention to social development and to culture is needed. The present study reports on a group randomized controlled trial of a friendship-based HIV/STI prevention…

Objective: Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) among boys has been associated with a variety of subsequent maladaptive behaviors. This study explored a potential connection between CSA and an increased likelihood of risky sexual behavior in adulthood. Further, the study examined whether or not alcohol use may contribute to this relationship. Method: As…

The number of older adults living with HIV/AIDS is larger than ever. Little is known about their sexual behaviors, although contrary to stereotypes, older adults desire and engage in sexual activity. Despite increased recognition of the need for prevention interventions targeting HIV-positive individuals, no secondary HIV prevention interventions…

Objective: Contingency management (CM) treatments are usually applied individually for drug abstinence, but CM can also be targeted toward health behaviors and implemented in groups. This study evaluated effects of a group-based CM intervention that focused on reinforcing health behaviors. Method: HIV-positive patients with cocaine or opioid use…

This paper examines how visual narratives may bridge relational understandings between people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH/A) and future oral health care providers. Borrowing from literature in participatory visual methods such as photo elicitation and photovoice, we explored how PLWH/A visually choose to represent their daily lives. This study uses…