Análise da percepção dos discentes sobre HIV e HPV: um estudo em escolas públicas potiguares

Abstract

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) affect mainly adolescents and young people. Among the most prevalent STDs are HIV and HPV, which are viruses that cause serious illness and cancer. Considering the importance of this issue in public health, the objective was to analyze the perception of students from public schools in Rio Grande do Norte about HIV and HPV. This is a quantitative and exploratory study, carried out with 196 high school students from public schools in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Trairi region, with an initial sample calculated with a confidence level of 5% and precision of 95%. Being previously analyzed and approved by the Research Ethics Committee protocol 3,052,169. Most participants were female (58.16%), single (77.04%), Catholic (65.08%) and brown (52.06%). As for the topic of sexuality, 63.68% mentioned having already had sexual intercourse; 27.54% indicate frequent use of condoms; 52.86% indicated that they trusted their partner/disliked him as a reason for not using a condom; 07.22% indicated having received sex education at school; 79.04% were unaware of HPV and 52.87% were aware of HIV. The interviewed adolescents presented risk behaviors and perceptions regarding STIs, such as low use of condoms, early onset of sexual life, inadequate sources of information and insufficient knowledge about the diseases (HIV/HPV). Therefore, health education and adequate sexual orientation are necessary for this public, aiming at the prevention and control of STIs.