Adolescents' Awareness of and Attitudes Toward Expedited Partner Therapy Provided in the Emergency Department. Sex Transm Dis 2020 Nov;47(11):754-759
Date
10/13/2020Pubmed ID
33045164DOI
10.1097/OLQ.0000000000001246Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85092886178 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)Abstract
BACKGROUND: Adolescents and young adults account for half of the 20 million new cases of sexually transmitted infections each year. Expedited partner therapy (EPT) has been shown to decrease reinfection rates and is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We aimed to (1) assess adolescents' awareness of EPT, (2) assess their likelihood of giving EPT received in the pediatric emergency department (PED) to their partner(s), and (3) identify factors associated with increased likelihood of giving EPT to their partner(s).
METHODS: Adolescents and young adults aged 14 to 22 years seeking care in 2 PEDs participated in a survey. Main outcomes were EPT awareness and likelihood of giving EPT to his/her partner(s). Patients were dichotomized into likely and not likely to provide partner(s) with EPT based on answers to a 5-point Likert scale question. χ and t tests were used to analyze the data.
RESULTS: Three hundred ninety-three participants were included. Only 11% (n = 42) were aware of EPT; however, 80% (n = 316) reported to be likely to give EPT received in the PED to his/her partner(s). Study site, being sexually active, and engaging in high-risk sexual behaviors were associated with an increased likelihood of giving EPT to their partner(s) (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Many adolescents are not aware of EPT; however, most were theoretically likely to give EPT received in the PED to his/her partner(s). With increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections and high utilization of the PED for adolescent reproductive health services, efforts to incorporate the use of EPT in PED workflows would be beneficial.
Author List
Pickett ML, Hoehn EF, Visotcky AM, Norman B, Drendel ALAuthors
Amy L. Drendel DO Interim Chief, Professor in the Pediatrics department at Medical College of WisconsinMichelle L. Pickett MD Associate Professor in the Pediatrics department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Alexis M. Visotcky Biostatistician III in the Institute for Health and Equity department at Medical College of Wisconsin
MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdolescentAnti-Bacterial Agents
Chlamydia Infections
Contact Tracing
Emergency Service, Hospital
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Patient Acceptance of Health Care
Sexual Partners
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Treatment Outcome
Young Adult
