Sexual Health
498 peer-reviewed studies indexed
The thought that i could continue with school got lost: a qualitative exploration of the impact of COVID-19 on the education and sexual and reproductive health of Malawi youth.
COVID-19 school closures and associated disruptions in Malawi led to lost motivation to learn, increased teenage pregnancy, early marriage, sex work among female students, and financial barriers to school re-enrollment, with lasting effects on educational quality and outcomes.
Adolescent Voices in Action-Co-Designing Digital Sexual and Reproductive Health Knowledge Translation Interventions: Community-Based Participatory Action Project.
Co-designing a digital sexual and reproductive health knowledge translation intervention with adolescent advisory groups across three Canadian cities resulted in a culturally relevant, youth-friendly, and credible intervention reflective of adolescents' voices.
Effects of an Afrocentric Sexual Health Education Curriculum for Medical, Nursing, and Midwifery Students in Tanzania: A Single-Blinded Randomized Controlled Phase 3 Trial.
This study provides 'gold standard' evidence that training in sexual health is culturally acceptable, needed, and effective for nursing, midwifery, and medical students in Tanzania.
Sexual Health Challenges in Individuals With and Without Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Population-Based Study in Denmark.
Individuals with ulcerative colitis as well as patients with IBD experiencing active disease, stoma, or perianal involvement faced more sexual challenges than those without IBD, highlighting the need for gastroenterologists to proactively address sexual health and provide tailored support.
A Sexual Health Self-Management Intervention (Psychosexual Educational Partners Program) for Couples With a History of Breast and Gynecological Cancer: Mixed Methods Feasibility Study.
The Psychosexual Educational Partners Program (PEPP) demonstrated feasibility as a 6-week sexual health self-management intervention for couples affected by breast or gynecological cancer, with an attrition rate of 22% meeting the feasibility benchmark and showing promising improvements in sexual communication.
Evaluation of recruitment methods and promotional strategies for sexual health services and research.
This qualitative study identified facilitators and barriers to pharmacy-based STI service uptake and research recruitment among underserved communities, highlighting multipronged approaches, collaboration, and dismantling systemic oppression as key strategies for improving equity.
Rethinking: Timely Access to Comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health Education within the Context of Seasonal Migration in the Urban Slum of the Greater Accra Region, Ghana-A Qualitative Exploratory Design.
Migrants' mobility hinders access to SRH education, resulting in poor SRH knowledge and decision-making, underscoring the need to address individual-, interpersonal-, and community-level factors and incorporate seasonal migration as a key social determinant of health in national SRH policies.
Contraceptive and sexual health services during the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery: a mixed-methods study in England.
COVID-19 disrupted sexual health and contraceptive services in England, with services adapting through remote delivery innovations that were retained post-pandemic, and 'readiness to adapt was aided by the pre-pandemic direction-of-travel towards greater use of digital and telemedicine services.'
Sexual health outcomes following gender affirming metoidioplasty: a systematic review.
Metoidioplasty appears to have largely satisfactory sexual health outcomes if penetrative sex is not a priority, though future studies are needed that include larger populations, use standardized outcome measures, and investigate outcomes from a person-centered, holistic approach.
Adapting an Intervention to Improve Adolescent Sexual Health Assessment and Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Prescription by Family Medicine Physicians in Alabama.
Using community-engaged intervention mapping, the authors developed and pretested PrEP-Pro, an intervention to support family medicine physician-trainees in eliciting sexual histories from and prescribing PrEP to adolescents, with special emphasis on Black adolescent girls and young women, finding high acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility scores.
Therapeutic Treatment Planning for Sex Therapy Using the Sexual Health and Integrative Pleasure (SHIP) Model.
The Sexual Health and Integrative Pleasure (SHIP) Model can be applied to sex therapy treatment planning through five main components—sexual adaptation and resilience, sexual literacy, relational intimacy, multidisciplinary care, and pleasure-oriented positive sexuality—to address often overlooked considerations in clinical care.
Integrating a Nurse-Led Sexual and Reproductive Health Program Among Adolescents Living With HIV in Nigeria: Randomized Controlled Trial.
A nurse-led sexual and reproductive health intervention significantly improved SRH knowledge and attitudes among adolescents living with HIV in Nigeria, supporting integration of such programs into adolescent HIV care.
Sexual Health in Bariatric Surgery: A Bibliometric Study.
The topic of sexual health in the field of bariatric surgery is rapidly growing despite its relative novelty, with research largely focused on male sexual problems while studies on women are mostly shaped around the axis of pregnancy.
A COSMIN Systematic Review of Sexual Health Literacy Self-Report Measures for Adolescents.
Despite the availability of 68 different self-report outcome measurement instruments assessing sexual health literacy in adolescents, their quality and alignment with sexual health literacy dimensions are insufficient, with development quality generally rated as inadequate or doubtful.
Examining resources to promote sexual health and address sexual violence at community colleges across the United States: a qualitative study.
Community colleges work within logistic, budgetary, and cultural constraints and often struggle to provide students with comprehensive and accessible sexual and relationship health resources.
Breast and Pelvic Cancer Survivors' Preferences for Psychosexual Interventions to Address Sexual Health Concerns: A Qualitative Study.
Breast and pelvic cancer survivors preferred psychosexual interventions delivered by sexual health specialists after active treatment, with content addressing education, emotional management, communication skills, and sexual script flexibility, though format preferences (group vs. individual) varied by cultural values.
Services availability and readiness assessment of adolescent sexual and reproductive health in primary healthcare facilities: evidence from selected districts in Ghana.
Significant disparities in the availability and readiness of essential adolescent sexual and reproductive health services were found across primary healthcare facilities in Ghana's Greater Accra region, with rural and public facilities demonstrating higher availability compared to urban and private facilities.
Evaluating health system barriers to sexual and reproductive health service delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic in China: a mixed-methods study.
The COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted SRH service provision and utilization in China, with family planning, contraception, and safe abortion services completely or partially disrupted, attributed to both supply-side and demand-side factors, with telehealth, task shifting, and triaging identified as key resilience strategies.
Implementation of Doxy-PEP in a Diverse Sexual Health Program in Northern Manhattan: The Doxy-Care Study.
Real-world implementation of doxycycline postexposure prophylaxis (Doxy-PEP) showed significant reductions in bacterial STIs, particularly rectal Chlamydia trachomatis, but uptake was disproportionately higher among non-Hispanic White individuals and those more engaged in care.
Peer-led public service announcement creation workshops for adolescent sexual and reproductive health education in Kenya.
A peer-driven PSA creation workshop approach in Kenya successfully produced nine sexual and reproductive health PSAs conceived, developed, and completed by adolescents themselves, demonstrating a low-cost, replicable model for adolescent health communication.
Identifying Barriers and Facilitators of Implementing a Sexual and Relationship Health Intervention within the Child Welfare System: A Mixed Methods Study.
This study identified barriers and facilitators to implementing the HEART online sexual health program within the child welfare system, finding obstacles including religious/conservative beliefs, trauma-related sensitivity, youth pushback to authority, and lack of structural support for sexual health education.
Analysing the scientific literature on transgender and gender diverse persons' experiences with sexual and reproductive health care services from an intersectional perspective.
This scoping review found that transgender and gender diverse persons' experiences in sexual and reproductive health care settings are shaped by multiple intersecting systems of oppression including cissexism, heterosexism, racism, classism, geographical disadvantage, and ageism, while methodological challenges in the existing literature hamper a full understanding of these multiple marginalizations.
Experiences of sexual and reproductive health screening and counseling in the clinical setting among adolescents and young adults with rheumatic disease.
Adolescents and young adults with rheumatic disease report low levels of sexual and reproductive health screening and counseling by their rheumatologist, yet report these topics are important and want to discuss them, with notable gaps in teratogenicity knowledge identified.
Determining the sexual health risks for adolescent girls and young women engaging in a transactional relationship with a Blesser.
AGYW involved with both a Blesser and an age-disparate partner were significantly more likely to be HIV positive, experience IPV, have an STI diagnosis, and among adolescents, be pregnant, with combined relationships increasing odds of HIV (AOR: 1.31), IPV (AOR: 1.87), STI (AOR: 1.55), and adolescent pregnancy (AOR: 1.66).
What are the facilitators and barriers for Asian-born gay and bisexual men to access sexual health services in Australia: an integrative review.
This integrative qualitative review identifies a 'socioecological cascade' where external, structural-level forces such as pervasive stigma and perceived threat of health-related visa requirements are progressively internalised, culminating in individual-level barriers to care among Asian-born gay and bisexual men in Australia.
Association of Male Androgenetic Alopecia with Psychosocial and Sexual Well-being in Early Middle-aged Men: A Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 Study.
Contrary to previous findings, a relationship between androgenetic alopecia and psychosocial problems in early midlife was not found.
Formative research and development of a referral toolkit for sexual health services linkages within chicago public high schools.
Focus groups and interviews in three Chicago Public Schools piloting sexual health services linkage efforts identified two central challenges—integrating services into school culture and addressing stigma/privacy—and informed the development of a referral toolkit for district-wide professional development.
Adolescent mental, sexual, and reproductive health in Ghana: a stakeholder analysis of actors' influence over policy formulation and implementation.
Multiple stakeholders in adolescent health had 'sometimes synergistic and sometimes divergent and conflicting views on policy agendas, formulation, and approaches to implementation,' with unresolved conflicts between powerful stakeholders stalling policy formulation and implementation while consensus and adequate resourcing moved processes forward.
The role of parent-adolescent communication interventions in improving sexual and reproductive health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.
This paper presents a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the role of parent-adolescent communication intervention programs in improving sexual and reproductive health outcomes among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa.
Basic science and translational research: recommendations from the Fifth International Consultation for Sexual Medicine (ICSM 2024).
Basic and translational research in sexual medicine has expanded significantly since 2015, but 'much work remains in translating preclinical findings into biomarkers and clinical therapies that can improve patient outcomes.'
Acceptability of Multilevel Sexual Health Interventions and Sexually Transmitted Infection Screening and Testing Among Persons With HIV Across Three Clinical Sites in Florida.
Acceptability of multilevel sexual health interventions—including ACASI-based sexual health history taking, self-collected extragenital STI testing, and LGBTQ+ welcoming environment measures—was high among people with HIV across three Florida clinics, with notable STI positivity rates including 11.9% of rectal samples positive for chlamydia and 6.5% of pharyngeal samples positive for gonorrhea.
User Views on Online Sexual Health Symptom Checker Tool: Qualitative Research.
Online assessments of STI risk provide users experiencing urogenital symptoms with more individualized and evidence-based health information that can improve their health care-seeking and provide reassurance in the period before they can access care.
Engaging adolescents for sexual and reproductive health and rights and family planning advocacy in Pakistan: a qualitative study protocol.
This study protocol describes a three-stage participatory action research (PAR) approach to develop a national sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and Family Planning Advocacy Toolkit for adolescents in rural Pakistan.
Prevalence and awareness of female sexual and reproductive health and rights and intimate partner violence in the Fako Division, Cameroon.
Though both males and females have a high awareness level of IPV and SRHR, the prevalence of IPV and SRHR violation amongst females is still very high in the Fako Division, Cameroon.
Systematic review of reviews on interventions to engage men and boys as clients, partners and agents of change for improved sexual and reproductive health and rights.
There is substantial evidence supporting a range of successful interventions to engage men and boys to improve sexual and reproductive health and rights, with markedly similar principles and approaches emerging across SRHR domains, and it is time to scale up and integrate these strategies.
Jordanian and Syrian adolescents' perspectives on where, what and how to seek sexual and reproductive health information.
Conservative social norms, referred to as the 'culture of shame,' prohibited Jordanian and Syrian adolescents from accessing and obtaining accurate sexual and reproductive health information, while participants nonetheless identified diverse sources in their quest for adequate and reliable SRH information.
Exploring the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescents and young people living with vertically acquired HIV in South Africa.
Despite regular healthcare contact, adolescents living with vertically acquired HIV experience unmet SRH communication needs, highlighting the necessity for improved sexual communication opportunities.
Access and utilization of youth friendly sexual and reproductive health services among illiterate adolescents in Rwanda: A mixed-methods participatory study.
The utilization of Youth Friendly Health Services among illiterate adolescents in Rwanda remains low at 25.3%, with key barriers including providers' negative attitudes, internalized stigma, and lack of materials tailored to illiterate adolescents.
What factors influence sexual and reproductive health care among adolescent and young adult cancer patients?: a novel serial focus group study.
AYA cancer patients' experiences with sexual and reproductive health care are influenced by eight identity (patient-level) factors and two contextual enablers (health care system-level factors) that affect access to appropriate and available care.
Integrating sexual and reproductive health in higher education and healthcare services in Ukraine: A sustainable initiative for empowering war-affected youth.
A Swedish Institute-funded project integrating Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights into Ukrainian university curricula for medicine, psychology, and social work students identified the need to establish Youth Clinics at Ukrainian universities to address the SRHR needs of war-affected youth.
Barriers to sexual health communication between parents and teenagers: Perspectives of parents in a rural community in Mpumalanga province, South Africa.
Parents in a rural Mpumalanga community identified cultural influences, parental unavailability, conflicting messages from parents and media, age differences, and television as key barriers to sexual health communication with their teenagers.
Shaping the African research agenda for gender transformative approaches to sexual and reproductive health and rights: A scoping review taking stock to re-align and move forward.
A scoping review of 52 articles found that evidence on gender transformative approaches to sexual and reproductive health and rights across Africa 'remains skewed geographically, programmatically, and analytically,' with more rigorous research needed on shifting gender power relations in partnership with social movements.
Comparative analysis of 2 approaches to monitor countries' progress towards full and equal access to sexual and reproductive health care, information, and education in 75 countries: An observational validation study.
The proposed revision to SDG Indicator 5.6.2's calculation produces systematically different results from the current formula, with differences in total indicator values ranging from -7.18 to +26.21 percentage points across 75 countries, and the alternative formulation better captures important distinctions in countries' legal landscapes governing sexual and reproductive health.
Risk factors of sexual and reproductive health problems, service utilization, and its challenges among street youths in East Gojjam zone, North West Ethiopia: exploratory qualitative study.
Risk factors exposing street youths to sexual and reproductive health problems included low perceived susceptibility, lack of awareness, multiple sexual partners, pornographic film exposure, and alcohol/substance use, while most street youths were not utilizing reproductive health services due to accessibility limitations and unsupportive health professional behavior.
The Influence of Genital Lichen Sclerosus on Sexual Health and Well-being: A Tripartite Comparative Analysis.
LS patients faced more sexual health challenges than pemphigus patients and healthy people, with a strong link between LS severity and worse sexual QoL, especially for women, reaffirming the need for comprehensive management.
Adolescents' knowledge and perceptions of sexual and reproductive health rights and access to services in the Greater Banjul Area, the Gambia.
Only 34.2% of adolescents in the Greater Banjul Area were aware of SRH rights, only 22.4% accessed SRH services, and public school students had significantly less access, emphasizing the need for age-appropriate SRH education, expanded youth-friendly services, and community engagement.
The state of youth sexual and reproductive health problems and service utilisation in major towns of Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study.
A relatively high proportion of youths in major urban towns of Ethiopia exhibit low uptake of SRH and FP services, with a higher proportion exposed to high-risk sexual behaviour and unintended pregnancy, often linked to poor access to accurate and relevant SRH information.
Gender-inclusive sexual health literacy scale for sex workers (SHL-SW): Development and validation in Thailand.
The Gender-inclusive Sexual Health Literacy Scale for Sex Workers (SHL-SW) is a reliable and valid 10-item instrument for assessing sexual health literacy among sex workers in Thailand, demonstrating high internal consistency and a confirmed four-factor structure.
Partner Perspectives on Cystic Fibrosis Sexual and Reproductive Health Care.
Partner perspectives reveal limited progression in CF-related SRH care, with patient-initiated discussions, paternalistic provider views, and lack of provider collaboration reinforcing outdated notions that parenthood in CF is not an option.
Sexual and reproductive health of adolescents and young people: identification of demands and experiences based on a qualitative study in communities in five Brazilian cities.
There is a lack of regular spaces for learning and dialogue about sexuality, prevention, and care for the youth due to absent investment in public health care and professional training.