Texting young people about safe sex does not reduce chlamydia and gonorrhea reinfection

Sending common texts to younger individuals who have just lately had a sexually transmitted an infection (STI) to encourage safer intercourse behaviors doesn’t scale back charges of chlamydia and gonorrhea reinfection, finds a trial revealed by The BMJ at present.

The truth is, the findings present that extra reinfections occurred within the group receiving texts than within the management group, prompting the researchers to name for rigorous analysis of well being communication interventions.

Charges of STIs resembling chlamydia and gonorrhea are highest in individuals aged 16-24 years.

Well being communications delivered by textual content message are low-cost and efficient for some behaviors, resembling stopping smoking, and the World Well being Group (WHO) at the moment recommends digital well being communication for sexual and reproductive well being.

However a evaluation on the results of sexual well being interventions delivered by textual content message discovered little prime quality proof, whereas the results on key behaviors resembling condom use, accomplice notification, and outcomes of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been nonetheless unsure.

To fill this data hole, a staff of UK researchers got down to measure the results of a collection of textual content messages (“safetxt”) on charges of chlamydia and gonorrhea reinfection in younger individuals at one yr.

Their findings are primarily based on over 6,000 individuals aged 16-24 years recruited from 92 sexual well being clinics throughout the UK, with a latest prognosis of or therapy for chlamydia, gonorrhea, or non-specific urethritis between 1 April 2016 and 23 November 2018.

A complete of three,123 contributors have been randomly assigned to the safetxt intervention and obtained a collection of textual content messages to enhance intercourse behaviors: 4 texts every day for days 1-3, one or two every day for days 4-28, two or three weekly for month 2, and 2-5 month-to-month for months 3-12.

An additional 3,125 management contributors obtained a month-to-month textual content message for one yr asking for any change to postal or e mail handle.

The researchers anticipated that safetxt would scale back the danger of chlamydia and gonorrhea reinfection at one yr by bettering three key safer intercourse behaviors: accomplice notification at one month, condom use, and sexually transmitted an infection testing earlier than unprotected intercourse with a brand new accomplice.

General, knowledge have been out there for 4,675 (75%) contributors, and traits resembling age, ethnicity, training, and sexual orientation have been related between the teams at first of the trial.

At one yr, the speed of chlamydia or gonorrhea reinfection was 22% (693 out of three,123) within the safetxt group versus 20% (633 out of three,125) within the management group.

At 4 weeks, 86% of contributors within the intervention group versus 84% within the management group had notified the final accomplice that they had intercourse with earlier than testing constructive to get therapy.

Additionally at 4 weeks, 42% of contributors within the intervention group versus 40% within the management group reported utilizing a condom finally sexual encounter, and this distinction was sustained at 12 months (34% intervention vs. 31% management).

At one yr, 54% of contributors within the intervention group versus 49% within the management group reported utilizing a condom at first sexual encounter with their most up-to-date new accomplice, however the variety of STIs was not lowered.

The proportion of individuals with a brand new accomplice and with two or extra companions at one yr was additionally increased within the intervention group.

The researchers acknowledge a number of limitations, together with the truth that males have been under-represented within the trial and that lots of their secondary outcomes relied on private studies, which may very well be influenced by social desirability bias (when respondents over-report “good” habits or under-report “unhealthy” or undesirable habits).

Nonetheless, they are saying the similarity of findings after additional sensitivity analyses is reassuring and means that their outcomes are strong.

“Our textual content message intervention was grounded in psychological principle, incorporating the perfect proof on well being habits change, however it didn’t have the results we anticipated,” they write. “In mild of our outcomes, WHO ought to revise its endorsement of digital habits change communication for strengthening well being programs, to specify which matters and content material WHO endorses.”

Additional analysis ought to deal with how you can scale back the stigma related to STIs to profit well-being, therapy, and precautionary behaviors for these with a prognosis of an STI, with out rising the danger of an infection, they add.