Sexual Health

Sexual Health publishes contributions on sexual health from the widest perspectives including HIV/AIDS, STIs, issues of sexuality, and reproductive health. Read more about the journalMore

Editors-in-Chief: Jason Ong and Joseph Tucker

Publishing Model: Hybrid. Open Access options available.

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Latest

These articles are the latest published in the journal. Sexual Health has moved to a continuous publication model. More information is available on our Continuous Publication page.

Published online 21 May 2024

SH24019Interventions aimed at increasing syphilis screening among non-pregnant individuals in healthcare settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Leah Moncrieff

, Morgan O’Reilly, Leanne Hall and Clare Heal

Syphilis, a pressing public health issue with severe potential complications, demands increased targeted screening interventions, especially among high-risk populations. This review examines a range of approaches, revealing technology-driven methods and linked syphilis screening with HIV monitoring particularly promising. Implementing successful, feasible and cost-effective interventions has the potential to enhance syphilis detection leading to prompt treatment, better patient outcomes and reduced community transmission.

SH24019 Abstract | SH24019 Full Text | SH24019PDF (763 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 20 May 2024

SH23211Early sexual experiences of adolescent men who have sex with men

Chen Wang

, Christopher K. Fairley

, Rebecca Wigan, Suzanne M. Garland, Catriona S. Bradshaw, Marcus Y. Chen and Eric P. F. Chow

This study documents adolescent men who have sex with men aged between 16 and 20 years and assesses the magnitude of change in sexual practice and trajectory in this population. Compared to an earlier study cohort, the median age at first sex was slightly increased in this cohort and there was a small delay in first-sex activity. This study elicits evidence of changes in sexual practice which could translate into targeted sexually transmitted infections prevention strategies.

SH23211 Abstract | SH23211 Full Text | SH23211PDF (657 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 20 May 2024

SH24025Adolescents’ pornography viewing frequency and its relationship with condom attitudes

Emily F. Galper

, Laura Widman

, Julia Brasileiro

and Seth M. Noar

Engaging in a critical exploration of adolescent behaviour, this study delves into the relationship between pornography viewing frequency and condom attitudes. Investigating 457 adolescents aged 13–18 years old, we found that those who viewed pornography more frequently exhibited more negative attitudes towards condoms. Notably, irrespective of age, gender, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, or sexual activity status, this relationship persisted, underscoring the need for targeted interventions and experimental studies to enhance pornography literacy among adolescents.

Published online 20 May 2024

SH24022Barriers to sexual health care for sexually diverse Muslim men: a scoping review

Muhammad Naveed Noor

, Souradet Shaw, Janice Linton and Robert Lorway

We provide a synthesis of research on access to sexual health care to sexually diverse Muslim men. Our results showed that a range of intersecting individual, interpersonal, healthcare system-related, and structural factors collectively work to produce contexts where it becomes difficult for sexually diverse Muslim men to access sexual healthcare services. Intensive research and advocacy efforts are required to improve sexually diverse Muslim men’s access to sexual health care, for countries to achieve HIV prevention goals.

Published online 14 May 2024

SH23197Adapting an artificial intelligence sexually transmitted diseases symptom checker tool for Mpox detection: the HeHealth experience

Rayner Kay Jin Tan

, Dilruk Perera, Salomi Arasaratnam

and Yudara Kularathne

Prior to the global Monkeypox (Mpox) outbreak, we developed a smartphone app (HeHealth) where users can take pictures of their penises with a smartphone to screen for symptomatic sexually transmitted diseases. We further developed the Mpox tool that involved formative research, stakeholder engagement, rapid consolidation of Mpox images, a validation study, and implementation. Artificial intelligence and machine learning approaches can be initiated by smaller datasets and refined along the way, which is important in the event of global pandemics or outbreaks.

SH23197 Abstract | SH23197 Full Text | SH23197PDF (907 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 14 May 2024

SH24026Analysis of pelvic floor muscle electromyography parameters in women with or without sexual dysfunction

Chunyan Wang

, Yan Che, Yumei Zhang, Tingfeng Guan, Jie Wang and Xinying Du

Female sexual dysfunction brings great trouble to women. Evidence suggests that women with greater pelvic floor muscle (PFM) strength have better sexual function. Sexually active women have better PFM endurance than inactive women. However, it has also been reported that PFM strength is not correlated with sexual function. Here, we assessed female PFM function with electromyography, and explored the relationships between electromyography parameters and sexual dysfunction, in an attempt to provide an objective basis for sexual dysfunction diagnosis and treatment.

SH24026 Abstract | SH24026 Full Text | SH24026PDF (199 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 13 May 2024

SH23176The impact of socio-environmental factors on doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis awareness in the US: a cross-sectional study

Krishen D. Samuel, Matthew S. Ellis and Mance E. Buttram

Bacterial STIs are on the rise in the US. Although people assigned male at birth can benefit from taking an antibiotic soon after sex (doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis) to prevent STIs, we found that only one-quarter of participants surveyed were aware of doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis; those living in places with LGBTQ inequality were less likely to be aware. Increased awareness of new prevention approaches among those most at risk is crucial to increased uptake.

Published online 06 May 2024

SH23185Turkish women’s perception of low sexual desire, its causes and consequences: an online qualitative survey

Sinan Tetik

and Özden Yalçinkaya Alkar

Our research indicates that women’s sexual desire is frequently ignored and suppressed, which can have negative consequences when not expressed within socially acceptable contexts. The causes and solutions for decreased desire in women extend beyond individual factors, and encompass relational and social influences. Sexual desire plays a crucial role in motivating sexual behaviour, and as such, it should be incorporated into health education, health promotion and public health policies.

Published online 29 April 2024

SH23194Client and staff perceptions of acceptability of MyCheck: a direct-to-pathology telehealth and e-testing service for comprehensive bloodborne virus and sexually transmissible infection screening

Lise Lafferty

, Clinton Rautenbach, Anna McNulty

, Nathan Ryder

, Carolyn Slattery, Rebecca Houghton, Aurelie Kenigsberg, Carolyn Murray, Nigel Carrington and Prital Patel

Sydney Sexual Health Centre (SSHC) piloted MyCheck, a direct-to-pathology pathway that facilitated bloodborne virus/sexually transmissible infection testing at participating pathology collection centres located across New South Wales. This qualitative study sought to understand perspectives of acceptability of the MyCheck intervention among SSHC clients and providers’. The MyCheck intervention was perceived by both SSHC clients and staff as an acceptable bloodborne virus/sexually transmissible infection testing pathway. However, further work is required to address stigma experienced by some clients when attending pathology collection centres.

SH23194 Abstract | SH23194 Full Text | SH23194PDF (213 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 29 April 2024

SH24028The use of suboptimal antiretroviral therapy when applying for migration to Australia: a case series

Daniel Tran

, Brent Allan, Alexandra Stratigos, Darryl O’Donnell, Dash Heath-Paynter, Aaron Cogle and Jason J. Ong

Even in the modern day, people living with HIV (PLHIV) are often subjected to poorer physical and mental health outcomes. Such health outcomes were identified in this case series, whereby six patients were noted to be experiencing significant stress, anxiety and medication side effects from electing to receive cheap, suboptimal HIV treatments to remain below Australian visa medical cost thresholds. These findings reinforce the need to review Australian migration laws which currently discriminate against PLHIV.

SH24028 Abstract | SH24028 Full Text | SH24028PDF (199 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 29 April 2024

SH23210The influence of home versus clinic anal human papillomavirus sampling on high-resolution anoscopy uptake in the Prevent Anal Cancer Self-Swab Study

Jenna Nitkowski

, Timothy J. Ridolfi, Sarah J. Lundeen, Anna R. Giuliano, Elizabeth Y. Chiao, Maria E. Fernandez, Vanessa Schick, Jennifer S. Smith, Bridgett Brzezinski and Alan G. Nyitray

Anal cancer disproportionately affects men who have sex with men living with HIV. We examined whether anal HPV sampling at home versus in a clinic impacts uptake of high-resolution anoscopy (HRA), an in-clinic procedure. Anal cytology history and insertive anal sex position were associated with higher HRA uptake, and attendance differed by race and HIV status in the clinic arm. Given that people living with HIV and Black men who have sex with men are disproportionately affected by anal cancer, interventions are needed to support their clinic attendance.

Published online 22 April 2024

SH23206Pre-exposure prophylaxis and telemedicine during coronavirus (COVID-19): a qualitative study of the experiences of health care professionals in Mexico

A. Cruz-Bañares

, A. Rojas-Carmona

, S. Aguilera-Mijares

, A. Martínez-Dávalos, S. Bautista-Arredondo

and H. Vermandere

Telemedicine, involving the use of technologies for remote healthcare services, was used by health care providers in Mexico to facilitate access to HIV prevention services, including pre-exposure prophylaxis. From their experiences, it became evident that telemedicine improved access to HIV-prevention counselling and enhanced time management for providers; at the same time, they struggled with inadequate infrastructure and concerns about privacy. They advocated for clear guidelines to establish procedures and provide support when delivering pre-exposure prophylaxis services remotely.

Published online 16 April 2024

SH23094Bacterial vaginosis after menopause: factors associated and women’s experiences: a cross-sectional study of Australian postmenopausal women

Linde L. Stewart

, Lenka A. Vodstrcil

, Jacqueline Coombe

, Catriona S. Bradshaw and Jane S. Hocking

Bacterial vaginosis is the most common cause of vaginal discharge in reproductive age women, yet little is known about it in postmenopausal women. This survey of Australian postmenopausal women found that women continue to report bacterial vaginosis after menopause, it affects their quality of life, and it is associated with sexual activity. Women of all ages are susceptible to bacterial vaginosis, research should not be limited to younger women, and developing an appropriate testing method should be a research priority.

SH23094 Abstract | SH23094 Full Text | SH23094PDF (280 KB) | SH23094Supplementary Material (746 KB) Open Access Article

Published online 16 April 2024

SH23202Associations between receiving non-consensual image and video sexts and average sleep duration among adolescents and young adults

Kyle T. Ganson

, Carolyn O’Connor, Jason M. Nagata, Alexander Testa, Dylan B. Jackson, Nelson Pang and Faye Mishna

Sexting is common among adolescents and is largely considered a part of contemporary adolescent and young adult relationships. However, receiving non-consensual sexts can have adverse mental health effects, despite little known about the effects on sleep. This study found that receiving non-consensual sexts was associated with lower sleep duration among girls and young women, underscoring the needs for greater awareness of this behaviour among health and mental health professionals.

Published online 11 April 2024

SH23175Management of acute sexual assault presenting to a large Australian sexual health clinic in 2012–2021: a retrospective clinical audit

Aleah Kink

, Janet M. Towns

, Christopher K. Fairley

, Tiffany R. Phillips

, Catriona S. Bradshaw

and Eric P. F. Chow

The incidence of sexual assault continues to rise in Australia. However, there is a paucity of literature examining the nature of assault and subsequent management for victims of all genders. The findings of this large, retrospective clinical audit determined that the nature of assault differs between male and female victims, with varying detail of clinical documentation. There is need for a standard primary care protocol for clients presenting with acute sexual assault.

SH23175 Abstract | SH23175 Full Text | SH23175PDF (560 KB) Open Access Article