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PubMed1994

Condom use and the risk of HIV infection: who is being protected?

Descriptive baseline data at enrollment into a cohort of male factory workers who were tested for HIV serology and monitored for sero-conversion over time, were analysed for condom use. At recruitment, the 1,146 men were asked about their sexual behaviour, history of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), condom use and circumstances under which condoms were used. HIV seroprevalence in the cohort was 18.2 pc. Self reported use of condoms was low, with only 5 pc of the men reporting using them all the time. Forty four pc reported that they had never used a condom, 11.5 pc tried a condom only once, and 30.5 pc used condoms less than half the time. HIV positive men were more likely (Odds Ratio [OR] = 2.2 95 pc CI: 1.3-3.3) to use condoms than those who tested negative. Men using a condom more than once were younger and had more education (p values < 0.0005). Univariate analysis showed that men with self reported risk factors for HIV infection were more likely to use condoms. Significantly more condom users reported paying for sex, multiple sex partners or (for married men) a girlfriend (p < 0.005). Condom users also more often had a history of genital ulcers, urethral discharge or other STDs. Few married men (24 pc) reported using a condom with their wives. Condom use was more commonly reported with commercial sex workers (44 pc) or other extramarital partners (36 pc). Some risk factors for HIV infection were also present amongst men who reported that they did not use condoms.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Condom use with casual partners by men in Kampala, Uganda.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence and correlates of condom use with casual sex partners by men in urban Uganda and to identify barriers to condom use that are amenable to intervention. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, door-to-door survey of men residing in a poor area of Kampala, Uganda. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A multistage, probability sample was approximated by recruiting participants within randomly selected neighborhoods. A total of 301 men between the ages of 18 and 45 years answered questions about condom knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices. The respondents also provided demographic and HIV risk-related information. RESULTS: Condom use was higher than previously found in studies in Uganda: 46% of men reported using a condom at the last casual sexual encounter; 31% reported always using condoms with casual partners. In multivariate analysis, independent correlates of condom use included higher condom self-efficacy (4-item scale, odds ratio 1.3 per scale point), lower embarrassment around condoms (3-item scale, odds ratio 0.44 per scale point), knowing where to buy a condom (odds ratio 3.9), knowing how to use a condom (8-item scale, odds ratio 1.4 per scale point), and increasing number of casual sex partners (odds ratio 1.4 per partner). CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that condom use may be further increased in this population by conducting demonstrations of condom use skills, preparing individuals to anticipate circumstances that make using condoms difficult and using a variety of outlets to dispense condoms.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Increased condom use among teenage males, 1988-1995: the role of attitudes.

CONTEXT: Understanding whether and to what degree changes in young men's attitudes explain increases in condom use over time can be useful in developing more effective disease prevention strategies. METHODS: Data from the 1988 and the 1995 National Survey of Adolescent Males are used to determine changes in attitudes toward condoms, pregnancy prevention and HIV and AIDS. Two-limit tobit models are employed to investigate the association between these attitudes and condom-use behavior and to examine how this relationship may have changed over time. RESULTS: Between 1988 and 1995, young men's attitudes toward partner appreciation of condom use, condom-use embarrassment and pleasure reduction from condom use all changed in a direction suggestive of more consistent condom use. However, attitudes related to pregnancy prevention and AIDS avoidance changed in a direction suggestive of less-consistent condom use. Changes over time in the strength of the relationship between three attitude measures (masculinity, pleasure reduction and partner appreciation) and condom use also were predictive of lower levels of condom-use consistency. Only the strength of the relationship between condom-use embarrassment and consistent condom use changed in a direction corresponding to observed increases in rates of condom use among young men. CONCLUSIONS: Many of the significant changes in young males' attitudes toward condoms do not explain the increase in consistent condom use among adolescent males that occurred between 1988 and 1995. However increasing male contraceptive responsibility and emphasizing the risks and consequences of contracting HIV appear to be viable routes for policymakers to explore. Efforts particularly need to be targeted toward Hispanics.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed2006

The developmental association of relationship quality, hormonal contraceptive choice and condom non-use among adolescent women.

PURPOSE: Consistent condom use is critical to efforts to prevent sexually transmitted infections among adolescents, but condom use may decline as relationships and contraceptive needs change. The purpose of this research is to assess changes in condom non-use longitudinally in the context of changes in relationship quality, coital frequency and hormonal contraceptive choice. METHODS: Participants were women (aged 14-17 years at enrollment) recruited from three urban adolescent medicine clinics. Data were collected at three-month intervals using a face-to-face structured interview. Participants were able to contribute up to 10 interviews, but on average contributed 4.2 interviews over the 27-month period. Independent variables assessed partner-specific relationship quality (five items; scale range 5-25; alpha = .92, e.g., this partner is a very important person to me); and, number of coital events with a specific partner. Additional items assessed experience with oral contraceptive pills (OCP) use and injected depo medroxy-progesterone acetate (DMPA). The outcome variable was number of coital events without condom use during the past three months. Analyses were conducted as a three-level hierarchical linear growth curve model using HLM 6. The Level 1 predictor was time, to test the hypothesis that condom non-use increases over time. Level 2 predictors assessed relationship quality and coital frequency across all partners to assess hypotheses that participants' condom non-use increases over time as a function of relationship quality and coital frequency. Level 3 predictors assessed the participant-level influence of OCP or DMPA experience on time-related changes in condom non-use. RESULTS: A total of 176 women reported 279 sex partners and contributed 478 visits. Both average coital frequency and average condom non-use linearly increased during the 27-month follow-up. At any given follow-up, about 35% reported recent OCP use, and 65% reported DMPA use. HLM analyses showed that condom non-use increased as a function of time (beta = .12; p = .03, Level 1 analysis). Increased condom non-use over time was primarily a function of increased coital frequency (beta = .01; p = .00), although higher levels of relationship quality were associated with increased condom non-use at enrollment (beta = .44; p = .00, Level 2 analysis). The temporal rise in condom non-use significantly increased among DMPA users (beta = .06; p = .00) but not OCP users (Level 3 analysis) (beta = -.04; p = .06). CONCLUSIONS: Developmentally, relationship characteristics and coital frequency appear to have increasing weight in decisions about condom use. Hormonal contraceptive methods are not equivalently associated with the overall temporal decline in condom use. Future research associated with dual contraceptive/condom use should address differential factors associated condom use in combination with different hormonal methods.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

"No party hat, no party": successful condom use in sex work in Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

Sex workers and their clients are particularly vulnerable to HIV/STI transmission. Most research on condom use has focused on barriers preventing use; less is known about attitudes, motivations and strategies employed by those who feel positively about condoms and who use them successfully. For this qualitative study, we conducted focus group discussions with sex workers (14), both female and transvestite, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, and female sex workers (17) and male clients (11) in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, who identified themselves as successful condom users in a condom use questionnaire. Discussions explored definitions of successful condom use, motivations and strategies for condom use and messages for future condom promotion. Sex workers defined successful condom use as being in agreement with their clients and partners about using condoms, protecting themselves from disease and unwanted pregnancy, and feeling good about using condoms. Condoms were seen to be hygienic, offer protection and provide a sense of security and peace of mind. Specific strategies included always having condoms on hand, stressing the positive aspects of condoms and eroticising condom use. Future educational messages should emphasise condom use to protect loved ones, increase security and pleasure during sex, and demonstrate respect for both sex workers, clients and partners.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Consistency in condom use in the context of HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe.

Against the backdrop of a high prevalence of the human immunodeficiency virus infection in Zimbabwe, this paper analyses data from the 1997 Zimbabwe Sexual Behaviour and Condom Use Survey to throw light on the degree to which sexually active adults consistently use condoms in high-risk sexual situations. The multivariate results indicate that at the time of the survey, consistent condom use in non-marital relationships is significantly higher for males than females, higher among those who had access to information about condoms from multiple sources than among those with limited access, and higher among those who have positive attitudes to condoms than among those with negative attitudes. Even though consistent condom use with non-marital partners is higher for those who know a source where condoms can be obtained, this effect is due to the fact that these respondents have more positive attitudes towards condoms. Likewise, the higher levels of consistent condom use exhibited by those who are aware of the efficacy of condoms are due to the fact that men have higher awareness of this, and men use condoms more consistently than women. In sum, the results suggest that the effects of the respondents' sex and their knowledge of the prophylactic importance of condoms and where condoms might be obtained are a function of other socioeconomic advantages they have. It is, therefore, concluded that programmes that use mass media information, education and communication campaigns to reduce shyness, embarrassment and stigma about condom use can help increase consistent use of condoms in non-marital relationships in Zimbabwe.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed2005

Consistent condom use dynamics among sex workers in Central America: 1997-2000.

The paper aims to provide evidence on consistent condom use dynamics among sex workers in Central America between 1997 and 2000, and to examine the most important predictors of use behaviour important for policy and programme interventions in the region. Data on 3500 sex workers, 1500 from 1997 and 2000 from the year 2000, were analysed. The samples represented sex workers in low socioeconomic neighbourhoods who met their clients at known sex establishments or by the roadside. Sex workers were more likely to have used condoms consistently in 2000 than in 1997 (Odds Ratio (OR) = 1.4, p < or = 0.05). Sex workers who discussed condoms with their partners or lovers used them consistently with all clients more than those who did not (OR = 1.3, p < or = 0.10). Knowledge of condom advantages had a positive influence on consistent use. Sex workers who reported using condoms to prevent pregnancy or STDs used them consistently with all clients more than those who did not (OR = 1.2, and 1.3 respectively, p < or = 0.10). The source of condoms is an important predictor of consistent condom use. Sex workers who bought condoms from health establishments or from brothels used them consistently more than those who did not (both OR = 1.3, p < or = 0.10, and p < or = 0.05, respectively). Self-efficacy had a positive effect on consistent condom use. Sex workers who reported that they would use condoms even if clients offered to pay more for unprotected sex used them consistently with all clients more than those who did not (OR = 18, p < or = 0.001). The findings suggest that having condom skill is positively related to condom use. Sex workers who had all four skills used condoms more consistently than those who had none (OR = 1.6, p < or = 0.01). In order to increase consistent condom use and avert more incidences of HIV/AIDS and other STIs, programme interventions need to use the most efficient way to provide quality information, and provide repeated training on condom negotiation and use skills to sex workers.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed2001

The acceptability of the female condom: perspectives of family planning providers in New York City, South Africa, and Nigeria.

This article seeks to fill the gap in female condom acceptability research by examining family planning (FP) providers' attitudes and experiences regarding the female condom in three countries (South Africa, the US, and Nigeria) to highlight providers' potential integral role in the introduction of the female condom. The case studies used data drawn from three independent projects, each of which was designed to study or to change FP providers' attitudes and practices in relation to the female condom. The case study for New York City used data from semistructured interviews with providers in one FP consortium in which no special female condom training had been undertaken. The data from South Africa were drawn from transcripts and observations of a female condom training program and from interviews conducted in preparation for the training. The Nigerian study used observations of client visits before and after providers were trained concerning the female condom. In New York City, providers were skeptical about the contraceptive efficacy of the female condom, with only 8 of 22 providers (36%) reporting they would recommend it as a primary contraceptive. In South Africa, providers who had practiced insertion of the female condom as part of their training expressed concern about its physical appearance and effects on sexual pleasure. However, they also saw the female condom as a tool to empower clients to increase their capacity for self-protection. Structured observations of providers' counseling interactions with clients following training indicated that Nigerian providers discussed the female condom with clients in 80% of the visits observed. Despite the lack of a uniform methodology, the three case studies illuminate various dimensions of FP providers' perceptions of the acceptability of the female condom. FP providers must be viewed as a critical factor in female condom acceptability, uptake, and continued use. Designing training programs and other interventions that address sources of provider resistance and enhance providers' skills in teaching female condom negotiation strategies may help to increase clients' use of the female condom.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2002

Reasons for not using condoms among female sex workers in Indonesia.

The aim of this study was to gather data on condom use among brothel-based female sex workers in Indonesia and to study the reasons for not using condoms in order to provide new and existing condom promotion programs with information to improve their performance. Quantitative data were gathered by KABP surveys (n = 1450) and a condom diary with a sample of 204 female sex workers. Qualitative data were collected by conducting focus group discussions and in-depth interviews among female sex workers and pimps. Around 53% of sexual intercourses were reported to be protected, and 12% of these protected intercourses were preceded by clients' argumentation against it. Only 5.8% of sex workers consistently used condoms for a 2-week period of observation, and this figure decreased to 1.4% for a 4-week period. Reasons for not using condoms from the clients' side, as mentioned by the sex workers, were perceived less pleasure due to the condom and the belief that clients that are acquainted with the sex workers do not need protection against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) or AIDS. The main reasons of female sex workers for not using condoms were the beliefs that boyfriends, native Indonesians and healthy-looking clients cannot spread STDs. Another reason stated was that sex workers had already taken other preventive measures, like taking antibiotics. The research also showed that pimps were not very supportive of condom use programs in Indonesia. Condom unacceptability is an important reason for not using condoms for both clients and female sex workers, whereas pimps, who are in the best position to encourage condom use, unfortunately consider condom use as a threat to their business. For the successful introduction of consistent condom use, it is necessary to design interventions for both sex workers and clients and to provide appropriate educational materials and preferred brands of condoms. Also, pimps must be involved in intervention programs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Breakage and slippage of condoms among users in north Gondar Province, Ethiopia.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of condom breakage and slippage among male condom users and to analyse some factors affecting condom breakage. DESIGN: Prospective study undertaken from March to June 1996. SETTING: Gondar, Teda and Aykel health centres in north Gondar province. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred and seventy literate male condom users who volunteered to participate in the study were enrolled, but data were collected and analysed for 143 persons. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Condom breakage was measured as the number of condom broken while opening the package, putting on, during intercourse or withdrawal; and condom slippage was measured as the number of condoms slipped off the penis during intercourse or withdrawal. RESULTS: Of 143 participants, 26.6% broke condoms. Total condom breakage rate was 4.6% and slippage rate was 0.1%; half of the condom breakage occurred at the tip. Condom breakage was more observed in less educated (p < 0.05). Breakage rate and experience of condom use were negatively correlated (r = -0.214, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: User's knowledge and experience reduce the breakage of condom.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Promotion of condom use in a high-risk setting in Nicaragua: a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: In Latin America, motels rent rooms for commercial and non-commercial sex. We investigated the impact of providing health-education material and condoms on condom use in Managua, Nicaragua. METHODS: In a randomised controlled trial, in 19 motels, we gave condoms on request, made them available in rooms, or gave condoms directly to couples, with and without the presence of health-education material in the rooms. In a factorial design we assessed condom use directly by searching the rooms after couples had left. FINDINGS: 11 motels were used mainly by sex workers and their clients and eight mainly for non-commercial sex. 6463 couples attended the motels in 24 days. On 3106 (48.0%) occasions, at least one used condom was retrieved. Condom use was more frequent for commercial sex than for non-commercial sex (60.5 vs 20.2%). The presence of health-education material lowered the frequency of condom use for commercial sex (odds ratio 0.89 [95% CI 0.84-0.94]) and had no effect on use for non-commercial sex (1.03 [0.97-1.08]). Condom use increased for commercial (1.31 [1.09-1.75]) and non-commercial sex (1.81 (1.14-2.81) if condoms were available in rooms. Directly handing condoms to couples was similarly effective for commercial sex but less effective for non-commercial sex (1.32 [1.03-1.61] vs 1.52 [1.01-2.38]). INTERPRETATION: In Latin America, motels are key locations for promoting the use of condoms. Making condoms available in rooms is the most effective strategy to increase condom use, whereas use of health-education material was ineffective. These findings have important implications for HIV-prevention policies.

Condoms↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The effectiveness of video-based interventions in promoting condom acquisition among STD clinic patients.

GOAL OF THIS STUDY: This study examined the effectiveness of video-based patient education interventions on promoting condom use among men and women seeking services at a large public STD clinic in New York City. METHODS: Culturally sensitive video-based interventions designed to promote safer sex behaviors were evaluated in a randomized study of black and Hispanic male and female STD clinic patients. Subjects (n = 1,653) were randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1) control, 2) video viewing, and 3) video viewing followed by participation in an interactive group session led by a trained facilitator. The authors examined 1) the effectiveness of interventions in increasing STD and condom-related knowledge, positive attitudes about condoms, human immunodeficiency virus/STD risk perceptions, and self-efficacy and 2) the relationships among these variables, level of intervention, and condom acquisition, a behavioral measure of condom use. RESULTS: Compared with a control group, subjects assigned to video viewing demonstrated greater knowledge about condoms and STDs, more positive attitudes about condom use, increased human immunodeficiency virus/STD risk perceptions, greater self-efficacy, and higher rates of condom acquisition. Subjects assigned to video viewing followed by interactive sessions demonstrated still further increases in risk perceptions, self-efficacy, and condom acquisition, but not in knowledge or condom attitudes. A significant proportion of the association between the behavioral outcome of condom acquisition and level of intervention is attributable to the impact of interventions on risk perception and self-efficacy. CONCLUSIONS: Based on extensive formative research that identified barriers to safer sex behaviors, video-based interventions were developed to promote condom use among black and Hispanic men and women attending STD clinics. Designed to be integrated into clinic services, these interventions help improve knowledge, promote positive attitudes about condoms, and increase condom acquisition among individuals at high risk of acquiring and transmitting human immunodeficiency virus infection and other STDs.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1997

Reasons for not using condoms of clients at urban sexually transmitted diseases clinics.

BACKGROUND AND GOAL: Greater understanding of the factors related to inconsistent condom use is essential in the development of strategies to promote condom use among clients who access public, inner-city sexually transmitted diseases (STD) clinics. Therefore, this study aimed to explore reasons for not using condoms among 260 predominantly African American heterosexual male and female clients presenting for care at two inner-city STD clinics. STUDY DESIGN: Clients selected for this descriptive analysis reported having had at least one unprotected episode of sexual intercourse in the last 10 episodes. In face-to-face interviews, clients provided information about sexual activity, sexual partners, and condom use in the previous 30 days. In addition, they were asked to indicate the main reason for not using condoms when having unprotected sex. RESULTS: Content analysis showed six major categories of reasons for not using condoms: reasons related to partner relationships, reasons related to sexual sensation, reasons related to situational constraint, reasons related to condoms themselves, reasons related to pregnancy, and reasons related to types of sexual activity. Most frequent explanations given for not using condoms included partner trust (19.6%), the feel of condoms (11.9%), and lack of condom availability (11.5%). Clients also reported barriers to condom use that included beliefs about condom sensation and partner relationships. CONCLUSIONS: These results show the continued barriers that exist with respect to condom use in at-risk populations and emphasize the need to tailor meaningful interventions in order to promote condom use among persons who, for differing reasons, choose not to use them.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Determinants of condom-use behaviour among STD clinic attenders in South Africa.

This cross-sectional study analyses determinants of condom-use behaviour among patients attending dedicated STD clinics in South Africa. A structured interviewer-administered survey was conducted among 1473 patients. Patients' beliefs and attitudes towards condom use in general, as well as their personal condom-use behaviour were measured. Their perceptions, regarding the social influence of their partners and friends on their condom use, and of their self-efficacy in using condoms, while infected with an STD were also measured. Condom use, as a dependent variable, was examined and patients were placed in a pre-contemplation stage if they had never used a condom, contemplation if they had seriously thought of using a condom, some action stage if they sometimes used a condom and regular action stage if they used a condom every time. The relationships between the stages of change, as dependent variables, and the independent variables were investigated for both those patients with steady partners and those with outside partners. This was performed by stepwise multiple regression analyses. The variables that significantly explained stages of change were similar for patients with steady partners and those with outside partners. In both partner groups communication was the variable most strongly associated with the use of condoms. General self-efficacy in condom use, self-efficacy in condom use with a partner and attitudes towards the use of condoms played a role in determining patients' different stages of change.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Condom use and HIV risk behaviors among U.S. adults: data from a national survey.

CONTEXT: How much condom use among U.S. adults varies by type of partner or by risk behavior is unclear. Knowledge of such differentials would aid in evaluating the progress being made toward goals for levels of condom use as part of the Healthy People 2000 initiative. METHODS: Data were analyzed from the 1996 National Household Survey of Drug Abuse, an annual household-based probability sample of the noninstitutionalized population aged 12 and older that measures the use of illicit drugs, alcohol and tobacco. The personal behaviors module included 25 questions covering sexual activity in the past year, frequency of condom use in the past year, circumstances of the last sexual encounter and HIV testing. RESULTS: Sixty-two percent of adults reported using a condom at last intercourse outside of an ongoing relationship, while only 19% reported using condoms when the most recent intercourse occurred within a steady relationship. Within ongoing relationships, condom use was highest among respondents who were younger, black, of lower income and from large metropolitan areas. Forty percent of unmarried adults used a condom at last sex, compared with the health objective of 50% for the year 2000. Forty percent of injecting drug users used condoms at last intercourse, compared with the 60% condom use objective for high-risk individuals. Significantly, persons at increased risk for HIV because of their sexual behavior or drug use were not more likely to use condoms than were persons not at increased risk; only 22% used condoms during last intercourse within an ongoing relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Substantial progress has been made toward national goals for increasing condom use. The rates of condom use by individuals at high risk of HIV need to be increased, however, particularly condom use with a steady partner.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Determinants of trends in condom use in the United States, 1988-1995.

CONTEXT: Although overall condom use has increased substantially over the past decade, information is needed on whether dual method use has also become more common. In addition, there is little information on which characteristics of women influence condom use and dual method use, and on whether these characteristics have changed over time. METHODS: Data from the 1988 and 1995 National Surveys of Family Growth are examined to evaluate trends in condom use--either use alone or use with another highly effective method (dual method use). Logistic and multinomial regression analyses are presented to analyze the influence of women's characteristics on condom use. RESULTS: Current condom use rose significantly between 1988 and 1995, from 13% to 19% of all women who had had sex in the past three months. Dual method use increased from 1% in 1988 to 3% in 1995, still a very low level. In both years, current condom use was higher among women younger than 20 (32-34% in 1995) than among those aged 30 or older (less than 20% in 1995). Likewise, current condom use was most common among never-married women who were not cohabiting in both 1988 (20%) and in 1995 (34%). Multivariate analyses showed that women in the early stage of a relationship (six months or less in duration) were much more likely than those in a long-standing relationship (five years or more in length) to use the condom (odds ratio, 1.5). In both 1988 and 1995, younger women and better educated women were more likely to be currently using the condom than were older or less-educated women. For example, in 1995, women younger than 18 were 1.8 times as likely as 40-44-year-olds to be using condoms, and college graduates were 1.5 times as likely as high school graduates to do so. Further, women who were not in a union and either had never been married or were formerly married were more likely to be current condom users in 1995 than were married women (odds ratios, 1.5-1.9). Poor women were less likely than higher income women to be condom users in 1995 (odds ratios, 0.7-0.8), but poverty had made little difference in 1988. Groups likely to be dual method users were those also likely to be at greater risk of sexually transmitted disease: women in a union of less than six months duration (2.8), women younger than 20 (4.6-6.8), unmarried women (2.8-7.5) and women with two or more partners in the past three months (1.7). CONCLUSIONS: While the increase in condom use, especially among unmarried and adolescent women, is encouraging, condom use overall is substantially less than that needed to protect women and men against sexually transmitted diseases (including HIV). Moreover, steps need to be taken to understand why levels of dual method use are low and how they may be increased.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Clinical breakage, slippage and acceptability of a new commercial polyurethane condom: a randomized, controlled study.

Although latex remains the primary material for male condoms, a number of condoms made from synthetic materials have appeared in commercial markets in recent years. Published data on the safety and efficacy of these condoms is still limited, but nevertheless synthetic condoms do offer the user a wider choice and may encourage greater use of condoms for contraception and sexual transmitted infection prophylaxis. This paper reports on a study carried out in the Paris region of France on a new, commercial polyurethane condom marketed in Japan as Sagami Original and in Europe as Protex Original. A standard latex condom complying with the European standard for condoms (EN 600:1996) from the same manufacturer was used as the control in the study. The clinical breakage rate for the polyurethane condom was 0.6% (95% confidence interval 0.2-1.4%) compared to 1.3% (95% confidence interval 0.6-2.2%) for the latex condom. The difference was not statistically significant (chi(2) = 1.9, p = 0.168). Clinically significant slippage (complete slippage of the condom off the penis) was 1.1% (95% confidence interval 0.5-1.9%) for the polyurethane condom, compared to 0.5% (95% confidence interval 0.2-1.2%) for the latex; a difference that again was not statistically significant (chi(2) = 1.783, p = 0.182). The polyurethane condom was therefore equivalent to the latex condom in terms of clinical failure rate.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Erection loss in association with condom use among young men attending a public STI clinic: potential correlates and implications for risk behaviour.

BACKGROUND: To assess prevalence of condom-associated erection loss and to identify correlates of erection loss among men attending a sexually transmissible infections (STI) clinic. METHODS: Men (n = 278) attending an STI clinic responded to an anonymous questionnaire aided by a CD recording of the questions. The sample was screened to include only men who had used a condom during penile-vaginal sex at least three times in the past 3 months. Erection loss was assessed for 'the last three times a condom was used'. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 23.7 years (s.d. = 4.1); 37.1% of the men reported condom-associated erection loss on at least one occasion. Men who had reported condom-associated erection loss were also reported having more frequent unprotected vaginal sex (P = 0.04) and were less likely to use condoms consistently (P = 0.014) than men without erection loss. Men with erection loss were also more likely to remove condoms before sex was over (P = 0.001). Age and race/ethnicity were not associated with erection loss. In multivariate analysis, three significant statistical predictors were identified: low self-efficacy to use condoms (P = 0.001); problems with 'fit or feel' of condoms (P = 0.005); and having more than three sex partners during the previous 3 months (P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Condom-associated erection loss may be common among men at risk for STIs. This problem may lead to incomplete or inconsistent condom use. Men may be more likely to experience condom-associated erection loss if they lack confidence to use condoms correctly, if they experience problems with the way condoms fit or feel, and if they have sex with multiple partners.

Adult↗