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Sexual Practices (sexual + practice)
Selected AbstractsMasturbation and Discourse on Female Sexual Practices in Early Modern JapanGENDER & HISTORY, Issue 1 2009Anne Walthall Much of the discourse on female sexual practices in early modern Japan centred on masturbation, usually with a dildo, deemed necessary for a woman's mental and physical health when the male member was unavailable. References to female same-sex relations suggest that they too made sense in situations where men were absent. Some sex manuals treated female sexual arousal within the context of conjugal relations, while a text written for wives in polygamous marriages places female sexual practice at the service of male interests. The texts analysed here show not only that early modern Japanese held different attitudes toward sex than their western counterparts, but also that they could hold multiple attitudes at the same time. [source] Sexual Practices, Risk Perception and Knowledge Of Sexually Transmitted Disease Risk Among Lesbian and Bisexual WomenPERSPECTIVES ON SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, Issue 1 2005Jeanne M. Marrazzo CONTEXT: Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can be spread between female sex partners, probably through the exchange of cervicovaginal fluid and direct mucosal contact. Additionally, lesbians have a high prevalence of bacterial vaginosis, which may represent an STD in this population. However, few data on sexual practices or perceived STD risk among lesbians are available to guide development of interventions aimed at reducing the risk. METHODS: To inform the development of a safer-sex intervention for women who have sex with women, focus group discussions were conducted with 23 lesbian and bisexual women aged 18,29. Topics included sexual practices, STD transmission and prevention, and knowledge about bacterial vaginosis. RESULTS: Although six participants had had bacterial vaginosis and three an STD, women reported little use of preventive measures with female partners (washing hands, using rubber gloves and cleaning sex toys). Participants said that vaginal penetrative practices using sex toys and fingers or hands are common, and that partners frequently share sex toys during a sexual encounter, generally without condoms. Knowledge of potential for STD transmission between women, and of bacterial vaginosis, was limited. Participants viewed use of barrier methods (gloves or condoms) as acceptable, provided that there is a reason (usually STD-focused) to use them and that they are promoted in the context of sexual health and pleasure. CONCLUSIONS: Safer-sex messages aimed at lesbian and bisexual women should emphasize the plausibility of STD transmission between women, personal responsibility and care for partners' well-being; should target common sexual practices; and should promote healthy sexuality. [source] Masturbation and Discourse on Female Sexual Practices in Early Modern JapanGENDER & HISTORY, Issue 1 2009Anne Walthall Much of the discourse on female sexual practices in early modern Japan centred on masturbation, usually with a dildo, deemed necessary for a woman's mental and physical health when the male member was unavailable. References to female same-sex relations suggest that they too made sense in situations where men were absent. Some sex manuals treated female sexual arousal within the context of conjugal relations, while a text written for wives in polygamous marriages places female sexual practice at the service of male interests. The texts analysed here show not only that early modern Japanese held different attitudes toward sex than their western counterparts, but also that they could hold multiple attitudes at the same time. [source] Space, Place and Sexual Sociality: Towards an ,Atmospheric Analysis'GENDER, WORK & ORGANISATION, Issue 1 2010Adam Isaiah Green In this article we seek to contribute to the spatial turn in sociology by highlighting the socializing, cultivating and pedagogical properties of space in relation to sexual sociality and sexual practice. Towards this end, we develop two fundamental concepts , space and place , and anchor these to an existing corpus of empirical research on sexuality and space. This article explores public restrooms, bathhouses and sadomasochistic dungeons as organized sexual spaces, and in particular analyses how these places and spaces are organized and become organized around sexual activity. We argue that analysing the role of space in sexual sociality requires attention to both space and place, and their interrelationships , in short, an atmospheric analysis. [source] The anatomy of a forbidden desire: men, penetration and semen exchangeNURSING INQUIRY, Issue 1 2005Dave Holmes The rising popularity of unprotected anal sex (bareback sex) among men who have sex with men (MSM) is perplexing healthcare providers working in sexual health clinics. Epidemiological research on the topic overlooks several socio-cultural and psychological dimensions. Our research attempts to construct an appropriate theoretical edifice by which we can understand this sexual practice. In order to achieve this objective, a qualitative design was selected and 18 semiconductive in-depth interviews were carried out with barebackers from five European and North American cities. We then analyzed the data using two theoretical approaches that were sensitive to the issues of desire, transgression and pleasure. These theories are those of the late French psychoanalyst, Jacques Lacan, and those of poststructural thinkers, Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. These theoretical frameworks helped shed light on the significance of bareback sex, and can potentially influence healthcare providers in gaining a better understanding not only of their clients, but also of their own role in the circuitry of desire at work within bareback. We found that while the exchange of semen constitutes a dangerous and irrational practice to healthcare professionals, it is nevertheless a significant variable in the sexual lives of barebackers that needs to be taken into consideration in the provision of healthcare services. [source] Commodities and Sexual Subjectivities: A Look at Capitalism and Its DesiresCULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 1 2004Debra Curtis ABSTRACT The links between the production of sexual subjectivity and commodity consumption exemplify how capitalism thrives through the production of plurality and difference. Tupperware-style sex-toy parties organized by and for women provide the ethnographic ground for exploring the question of how sex toys marketed in this venue incite consumer desires and reshape sexual practices. Using an interpretative approach to understanding the effects of the home-based parties as well as in-depth interviews with participants, this article demonstrates how marketing practices encourage the proliferation of multiple sexualities. [source] Masturbation and Discourse on Female Sexual Practices in Early Modern JapanGENDER & HISTORY, Issue 1 2009Anne Walthall Much of the discourse on female sexual practices in early modern Japan centred on masturbation, usually with a dildo, deemed necessary for a woman's mental and physical health when the male member was unavailable. References to female same-sex relations suggest that they too made sense in situations where men were absent. Some sex manuals treated female sexual arousal within the context of conjugal relations, while a text written for wives in polygamous marriages places female sexual practice at the service of male interests. The texts analysed here show not only that early modern Japanese held different attitudes toward sex than their western counterparts, but also that they could hold multiple attitudes at the same time. [source] Sexual activity as a risk factor for hepatitis CHEPATOLOGY, Issue S1 2002M.P.H., Norah A. Terrault M.D. The accumulated evidence indicates that hepatitis C virus (HCV) can be transmitted by sexual contact but much less efficiently than other sexually transmitted viruses, including hepatitis B virus and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, because sex is such a common behavior and the reservoir of HCV-infected individuals is sizable, sexual transmission of HCV likely contributes to the total burden of infection in the United States. Risk of HCV transmission by sexual contact differs by the type of sexual relationship. Persons in long-term monogamous partnerships are at lower risk of HCV acquisition (0% to 0.6% per year) than persons with multiple partners or those at risk for sexually transmitted diseases (0.4% to 1.8% per year). This difference may reflect differences in sexual risk behaviors or differences in rates of exposure to nonsexual sources of HCV, such as injection drug use or shared razors and toothbrushes. In seroprevalence studies in monogamous, heterosexual partners of HCV-infected, HIV-negative persons, the frequency of antibody-positive and genotype-concordant couples is 2.8% to 11% in Southeast Asia, 0% to 6.3% in Northern Europe, and 2.7% in the United States. Among individuals at risk for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), the median seroprevalence of antibody to HCV (anti-HCV) is 4% (range, 1.6% to 25.5%). HIV coinfection appears to increase the rate of HCV transmission by sexual contact. Current recommendations about sexual practices are different for persons with chronic HCV infection who are in steady monogamous partnerships versus those with multiple partners or who are in short-term sexual relationships. (HEPATOLOGY 2002;36:S99,S105). [source] The art of public health nursing: using confession technč in the sexual health domainJOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 4 2006Dave Holmes PhD RN Aim., This paper explores the sexual health interview from a critical perspective, and to demonstrate how the confession ritual involved in this interview is implicated in the construction of subjectivities (meaning identities) as well as in fostering self-surveillance (self-regulation). Background., The concept of public health depends primarily on several surveillance tools that monitor both the incidence and prevalence rates of certain diseases. Within the subgroup of infectious diseases, sexually transmitted infections comprise a group that is closely monitored. As a result, surveillance techniques, including policing sexual practices, are part of the public health worker's mandate. Method., Using a Foucauldian perspective, we demonstrate that confession is a political technology in the sexual health domain. Findings., As one group of frontline workers in the field of sexual health, nurses are responsible for data collection through methods such as interviewing clients. Nurses play an integral role in the sexual health experience of clients as well as in the construction of the client's subjectivity. We strongly believe that a Foucauldian perspective could be useful in explaining certain current client behavioural trends (for example, an avoidance by at-risk groups of interactions with nurses in sexual health clinics) being observed in sexual health clinics across the Western hemisphere. Conclusion., Clinicians need to be aware of the confessional nature of their questions and provide requested services rather than impose services that they determine to be important and relevant. By appreciating that the sexual health interview is an invasive and embarrassing sexual confession, healthcare providers and policy-makers may be better able to design and implement more user-oriented, population-sensitive sexual health services. [source] A Psychoeducational Group for Men with Intellectual Disabilities Who Have Sex with MenJOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 4 2001Paul Withers The sexuality and sexual behaviour of people with intellectual disabilities (IDs) is one of the most complex and unresolved issues faced by service providers. Despite much evidence suggesting the disproportionately high risks faced by men with IDs who have sex with men, no epidemiological research has been conducted on the prevalence of HIV within this population. Current thinking suggests that self-help groups are efficacious in helping participants to develop positive sexual identities and to share information about safer sexual practices. The present study is a qualitative evaluation of a pilot support group for men with IDs who have sex with men. Themes relating to the formation of sexual identity and safety issues were extrapolated using content analysis from a transcript of the final group session. The implications for service delivery are discussed. The evaluation was conducted by a clinical psychologist external to the group and the members of the group. [source] A life of ease and immorality: Health professionals' constructions of mothering on welfareJOURNAL OF COMMUNITY & APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Mary Breheny Abstract Mothering on welfare is often discussed as perpetuating disadvantage and discouraging individuals from meaningful social activity defined as paid employment. This is understood in the context of increasing commitment to a neo-liberalist agenda, where people are viewed as autonomous individuals in a market economy, and unequal rewards within this economy are due to individual failings. The discourse analysis presented here examines how health professionals in New Zealand construct what it means to be a mother on welfare within the context of interviews on the health care needs of adolescent mothers. Mothering on welfare is predominantly described as transgressing social norms, where a life of ease is an indicator of immoral conduct and personal value is determined through education and employment. The welfare mother is also viewed as transgressing the norms of appropriate family structures and the sexual practices sanctioned within these structures. The legitimate work of mothering is absent in these accounts while the life of ease and plenty on welfare is made visible. These discourses draw attention to the ways in which welfare mothers are disqualified from neo-liberal definitions of citizenship, and demonstrate how motherhood on welfare is regarded as undermining rather than contributing to society. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Molecular and epidemiological characteristics of blood-borne virus infections among recent immigrants in SpainJOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY, Issue 12 2006Carlos Toro Abstract The increased immigration from developing regions to Western countries raises public health concerns related to blood-borne viruses. The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) infections among recent immigrants attending several Spanish diagnostic centers in years 2002 and 2003 was examined. Genetic characterization of viral subtypes and its relationship with distinct at-risk populations was carried out. A total of 1,303 immigrants were identified. They originated in Latin America (46.9%), Sub-Saharan Africa (23.7%), Eastern Europe (9.4%), and the Maghreb (9.2%). Seroprevalence rates were as follows: HIV-1 4.2%, HBV 4.1%, HCV 2.9%, and HTLV-1 0.8%. All patients with HIV-1 non-B subtypes, HBV genotypes E and A3, and HCV genotype 4 were sub-Saharan Africans, and had been infected mainly through heterosexual contacts. In contrast, Latin American homo/bisexual men carried HIV-1 subtype B most likely acquired after their arrival to Spain. In conclusion, while Sub-Saharan Africans carry wide diverse genetic variants of blood-borne viruses, the absence of high-risk practices in most cases could limit the spread of these variants. In contrast, Latin Americans with high-risk sexual practices may be a particularly vulnerable collective to acquire blood-borne viruses in the receptor country. J. Med. Virol. 78:1599,1608, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Culture and Women's SexualitiesJOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES, Issue 2 2000Evelyn Blackwood Anthropological studies of women's same-sex relations in non-Western societies provide an important source for theorizing women's sexuality because they allow us to go beyond a narrow focus on Western cultures and concepts. Looking at studies from groups other than the dominant societies of Europe and America, I explore the diversity of women's sexualities and the sociocultural factors that produce sexual beliefs and practices. This article argues that sexual practices take their meaning from particular cultures and their beliefs about the self and the world. Cultural systems of gender, in particular, construct different sexual beliefs and practices for men and women. I conclude the article by suggesting some broad patterns at work in the production of women's sexualities across cultures. [source] Primary care health issues among men who have sex with menJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS, Issue 4 2006Royal Gee MSN Abstract Purpose: The purpose of the article is to examine "appropriate" health care for men who have sex with men (MSM), which is not to suggest "special" health care. As a group, MSM are at increased risk for sexually transmitted infections, anal cancer, and mental health disorders. Focus areas in this article will address health issues that the primary care nurse practitioner (NP) may encounter in clinical practice: anal carcinoma, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), high-risk sexual practices, depression, and substance abuse were topics chosen for inclusion in this article. These topics were among those highlighted in the Healthy People 2010 Companion Document for LGBT Health, which served to examine the healthcare disparities and lack of access to needed services related to sexual orientation. Data source: Extensive literature review of research articles, journals, clinical practice guidelines, books, and public health department Internet Web sites. Conclusions: There are unique health disparities that exist for MSM related to social, emotional, and mental health factors, in addition to physical issues such as STDs. There is an increasing need for primary care providers to be aware of these disparities, as well as the factors that influence these disparities, in order to provide multidimensional care and health counseling that is unique to NP practice. Implications for practice: Both the primary care NP and the patient should be aware of the unique healthcare issues among MSM that should be incorporated into the patient's routine health maintenance program. As primary care providers, it is within the standards of practice for NPs to provide culturally competent care, along with health promotion and disease prevention for MSM. [source] Syphilis: An old enemy still lurksJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS, Issue 2 2006Assistant Professor of Clinical Nursing, FNP Family Nurse Practitioner, L. A. Ferguson MSN Abstract Purpose: To review the problem of increasing cases of syphilis as a communicable disease and to review different presentations of syphilis and to discuss treatment guidelines. Data sources: Extensive review of worldwide scientific literature on the epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of syphilis. Conclusions: Syphilis is an infectious sexually transmitted disease, which may have devastating consequences. Previously declining rates have led to complacency in prevention and diagnosis. Primary prevention includes education regarding safer sexual practices. Secondary prevention includes early identification via screening and treatment. Implications for practice: Syphilis is a contagious disease that has devastating consequences if not diagnosed and treated. Providers should keep ever vigilant in its identification. Specifically, it should be considered when evaluating all symptom-less dermatological lesions. [source] Queering the Seventeenth Century: Historicism, Queer Theory, and Early Modern LiteratureLITERATURE COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 2 2008Jeremy W. Webster This article explores the continuing prevalence of historicism and queer theory in seventeenth-century literature. While some scholars have announced the demise of new historicism and queer theory and others have challenged these critical perspectives' methodologies and assumptions, scholarship on the history of sexuality published within the past ten years demonstrates the continuing importance of historicist and queer theories on seventeenth-century literary criticism. Queer historicists, also called alteritists, constructivists, or differentialists, argue that the seventeenth century's constructions of same-sex sexual practices, desires, and emotions are fundamentally different from those of the present day. Challenges to this position maintain that early modern representations of same-sex eroticism share some continuity with those of today. Through an examination of scholarship on female same-sex erotics, passionate male friendship, constructions of ,sodomy' as a legal and social category, the exiling of homoeroticism from the center of government to the margins of society, and depictions of same-sex desire in the theater during the seventeenth century, this piece concludes that queer historicism remains a dominant voice in early modern studies. [source] Kunyenga, "Real Sex," and Survival: Assessing the Risk of HIV Infection among Urban Street Boys in TanzaniaMEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY QUARTERLY, Issue 3 2002Chris Lockhart This article examines possible avenues of HIV infection among urban street boys in Tanzania. In doing so, it questions the ways that AIDS researchers have defined and approached the phenomenon of "survival sex" in East and Central Africa. The article specifically examines the boys' sexual networks, sexual practices, and attitudes regarding their own sexual behavior, including their perceived risk of HIV/AIDS infection. Seventy-five street boys aged eight to 20 from the city ofMwanza were interviewed. Results suggest that almost all street boys are involved in a sexual network in which homosexual and heterosexual behavior occurs. Homosexual practices are rooted in a complex set of behaviors and ideologies known as kunyenga, which is a situated aspect of life on the streets and helps maintain the boys' strong dependence on one another. A key aspect of the boys' sexual careers involves a decrease in kunyenga activity as they approach the age of 18 and an increase in heterosexual encounters after the age of 11. There appears to be a critical period between these ages in which heterosexual and kunyenga activities overlap. It is suggested that boys between these ages represent a potential bridge for HIV/AIDS infection between the general population and the relatively enclosed sexual network of street boys. [Tanzania, street children, HIV/AIDS, sexual behavior] [source] Sexual Practices, Risk Perception and Knowledge Of Sexually Transmitted Disease Risk Among Lesbian and Bisexual WomenPERSPECTIVES ON SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, Issue 1 2005Jeanne M. Marrazzo CONTEXT: Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can be spread between female sex partners, probably through the exchange of cervicovaginal fluid and direct mucosal contact. Additionally, lesbians have a high prevalence of bacterial vaginosis, which may represent an STD in this population. However, few data on sexual practices or perceived STD risk among lesbians are available to guide development of interventions aimed at reducing the risk. METHODS: To inform the development of a safer-sex intervention for women who have sex with women, focus group discussions were conducted with 23 lesbian and bisexual women aged 18,29. Topics included sexual practices, STD transmission and prevention, and knowledge about bacterial vaginosis. RESULTS: Although six participants had had bacterial vaginosis and three an STD, women reported little use of preventive measures with female partners (washing hands, using rubber gloves and cleaning sex toys). Participants said that vaginal penetrative practices using sex toys and fingers or hands are common, and that partners frequently share sex toys during a sexual encounter, generally without condoms. Knowledge of potential for STD transmission between women, and of bacterial vaginosis, was limited. Participants viewed use of barrier methods (gloves or condoms) as acceptable, provided that there is a reason (usually STD-focused) to use them and that they are promoted in the context of sexual health and pleasure. CONCLUSIONS: Safer-sex messages aimed at lesbian and bisexual women should emphasize the plausibility of STD transmission between women, personal responsibility and care for partners' well-being; should target common sexual practices; and should promote healthy sexuality. [source] Intimate encounters: the embodied transnationalism of backpackers and independent travellersPOPULATION, SPACE AND PLACE (PREVIOUSLY:-INT JOURNAL OF POPULATION GEOGRAPHY), Issue 1 2010Fiona Allon Abstract This paper examines some of the tensions between local government authorities, residents, and backpackers occurring in a group of Sydney coastal suburbs that are the host destinations for large numbers of young independent travellers. Drawing on the concepts of ,intimacy' and ,encounter', it focuses on the kinds of embodied encounters occurring when the transnational networks of these travellers become overlaid on, and in conflict with, the patterns of occupancy and governance of relatively settled and established residential communities. These exchanges not only include the mix of experiences of local residents living side by side this group of transnational visitors, but also the interactions established among the travellers themselves. These involve new and novel relations of social and physical community formation, sexual practices, patterns of drug and alcohol consumption, as well as instances of danger, discomfort, and violence. The range and intensity of these kinds of encounters, as well as the problems frequently associated with them, appear to be increasing primarily because backpackers not only travel through but also dwell in place. One of the more neglected results of this phenomenon, is, as we suggest in this paper, a range of new encounters that are ,intimate' not only in the obvious sense of a meeting of diverse and physically proximate bodies. Employing the notion of ,cultural intimacy', we suggest that such encounters can also be said to arouse sensitivities associated with the often cherished and taken-for-granted fixities of home, place, and entitlement, for ,visitor' and ,host' alike. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Lack of HIV Seropositivity Among a Group of Rural Probationers: Explanatory FactorsTHE JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 3 2006Carrie B. Oser PhD ABSTRACT:,Context: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in rural America has been described as an epidemic, and the HIV prevalence rate among criminal justice populations is higher than the general population. Thus, criminally involved populations in Southern rural areas are at elevated risk for contracting HIV because of drug and sexual practices; however, little is known about HIV/AIDS in the fastest growing criminal justice population,probationers. Purpose: To examine possible explanations for the lack of HIV seropositivity found in a purposive sample of rural probationers. Methods: Data were examined from 800 felony probationers from 30 counties in Kentucky's Appalachian region. Measures included HIV prevalence within the 30 counties, migration patterns, HIV knowledge, substance use, and sexual risk behaviors. Findings: These probationers had a high level of HIV knowledge, reported minimal injection drug use, practiced serial monogamy, and reported minimal engagement in transactional sex. However, these probationers also reported negligible condom use, and injection drug users shared needles and works. Conclusion: Findings suggest the importance of developing programs targeting safe sex practices in rural areas. [source] Does Circumcision Make a Difference to the Sexual Experience of Gay Men?THE JOURNAL OF SEXUAL MEDICINE, Issue 11 2008Findings from the Health in Men (HIM) Cohort ABSTRACT Introduction., The relevance of circumcision in preventing male-to-male sexual transmission of HIV is poorly understood, in particular because any potential beneficial effect could be diminished by the impact of circumcision on sexual behavior. Aim., We examined the impact of circumcision on sexual experience. Methods., Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed on data from 1,426 HIV-negative homosexually active men. Main Outcome Measures., We compared the sexual behaviors and preferences of circumcised with uncircumcised men, and men who were circumcised at infancy with those who were circumcised after infancy. Results., Overall, 66% of men (N = 939) in the cohort were circumcised. After adjusting for age and ethnicity, we found no differences between circumcised and uncircumcised men in any insertive or receptive anal intercourse, difficulty using condoms, or sexual difficulties (e.g., loss of libido). Among the circumcised men, we compared those circumcised at infancy (N = 854) with those circumcised after infancy (N = 81). The majority cited phimosis (i.e., an inability to fully retract the foreskin) and parents' decision as the main reasons for circumcision after infancy. After adjusting for age and ethnicity, the men circumcised after infancy were more likely to practice any receptive anal sex (88% vs. 75%, P < 0.05) and to experience erection difficulties (52% vs. 47%, P < 0.05), but less likely to practice any insertive anal sex (79% vs. 87%, P < 0.05) and to experience premature ejaculation (15% vs. 23%, P < 0.05) than those circumcised at infancy. Conclusions., Our data suggest that overall circumcision status does not affect the HIV-negative gay men's anal sexual behaviors, experience of condom use, or likelihood of sexual difficulties. However, there is some suggestion of differences in sexual practices and preferences among circumcised gay men depending on the age at circumcision. In particular, gay men circumcised later are more likely to engage in and prefer receptive anal intercourse. Mao L, Templeton DJ, Crawford J, Imrie J, Prestage GP, Grulich AE, Donovan B, Kaldor JM, and Kippax SC. Does circumcision make a difference to the sexual experience of gay men? Findings from the health in men (HIM) cohort. J Sex Med 2008;5:2557,2561. [source] Circumcision in Australia: further evidence on its effects on sexual health and wellbeingAUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 2 2010Jason A. Ferris Abstract Objective: To report on the prevalence and demographic variation in circumcision in Australia and examine sexual health outcomes in comparison with earlier research. Methods: A representative household sample of 4,290 Australian men aged 16,64 years completed a computer-assisted telephone interview including questions on circumcision status, demographic variables, reported lifetime experience of selected sexually transmissible infections (STIs), experience of sexual difficulties in the previous 12 months, masturbation, and sexual practices at last heterosexual encounter. Results: More than half the men (58%) were circumcised. Circumcision was less common (33%) among men under 30 and more common (66%) among those born in Australia. After adjustment for age and number of partners, circumcision was unrelated to STI history except for non-specific urethritis (higher among circumcised men, OR=2.11, p<0.001) and penile candidiasis (lower among circumcised men, OR=0.49, p<0.001). Circumcision was unrelated to any of the sexual difficulties we asked about (after adjusting for age) except that circumcised men were somewhat less likely to have worried during sex about whether their bodies looked unattractive (OR=0.77, p=0.04). No association between lack of circumcision and erection difficulties was detected. After correction for age, circumcised men were somewhat more likely to have masturbated alone in the previous 12 months (OR=1.20, p=0.02). Conclusions: Circumcision appears to have minimal protective effects on sexual health in Australia. [source] The sexual lives of men with mild learning disability: a qualitative studyBRITISH JOURNAL OF LEARNING DISABILITIES, Issue 1 2009Evan Yacoub Accessible summary ,,We talked to some men with learning disability about sex and relationships. Some people lived in the community, and some people lived in hospital. ,,The men knew quite a lot about sex. Most people said they got good support from their keyworkers. ,,Some people were asked for sex when they did not want it. Some people were made to have sex that was not safe. ,,We have some ideas about how men with learning disabilities can speak up for themselves about sex and relationships. Summary We aimed to explore in detail the sexual lives and behaviour of men with mild learning disabilities living both in community and in secure hospital settings. We wanted to generate hypotheses about them and identify potential unmet needs. We used a narrative interview that focused on areas such as relationships, sex education, contraception and the attitudes of others towards the participants' sexual lives and orientation. We used the constant comparative method to analyse transcribed interviews. Several clients reported engaging in unsafe practices despite being aware of the risks. Participants generally felt that services had shifted from a paternalistic to a more supportive approach towards their sexual lives and orientation. Experiences with other men were commonly reported. Several participants reported being pressurised into sex as adults. In our sample, sexual knowledge did not lead to safe sexual practices. The good rapport with services reported by the participants may be utilised to provide further education and empowerment to improve the safety of sexual practices in this group. Other ways of improved service delivery are suggested. [source] Prevalence of drug resistance and newly recognised treatment-related substitutions in the HIV-1 reverse transcriptase and protease genes from HIV-positive patients naļve for anti-retroviralsCLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION, Issue 9 2004C. Torti Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of genetic changes in either the HIV reverse transcriptase (RT) or protease (Pro) genes in a cohort of patients naļve for anti-retroviral therapy. Of 61 patients, 43 (70.5%) were infected with HIV strains harbouring at least one resistance-related mutation, with 41 (67.2%) harbouring newly recognised treatment-related mutations. Among the 61 patients, the prevalence of specific mutations in the RT gene was as follows: 39A, 1.6%; 43E, 1.6%; and 228H, 1.6%. The prevalence of specific mutations in the Pro gene was as follows: 11I, 1.6%; 13V, 26.2%; 35D, 19.6%; 45R, 1.6%; 58E, 1.6%; 62V, 31%; 72V, 11.4%; 72M, 6.5%; 72T, 3.2%; 75I, 1.6%; and 89M, 13%. A higher prevalence of newly recognised mutations was found in strains from patients infected through sexual practices (30/36 = 83.4% vs. 11/25 = 44%; p 0.0023; OR 10.91; 95% CI 3.14,40.39). These findings support the use of resistance testing in patients naļve for anti-retroviral therapy, and suggest that the possible impact of newly recognised treatment-related mutations on clinical outcome requires further investigation. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||