Risk factors for HIV infection among adolescents and the youth: a systematic review

Abstract

Objective: to identify and analyze HIV infection risk factors among adolescents and the youth. Method: this is a systematic review whose guide question is: what are the risk factors for HIV infection among adolescents and the youth?” In total, five databases and Google Scholar were searched in December 2021 and the found publications between 2012-2022 were filtered without language restriction. Studies were selected by two independent reviewers. The included materials were subjected to methodological quality evaluation and narrative synthesis. Results: overall, we included seven studies out of the 26,191 retrieved. All studies were conducted in Africa. We found that the female gender, older age, low schooling, Black ethnicity, multiple sexual partners, inconsistent use of condoms, alcohol consumption, and early sexual onset constituted risk factors for HIV infection in adolescents and the youth. Conclusion: understanding risk factors underscores the provision of health policies and intervention strategies to strengthen the responsiveness of health services and nursing teams’ care to reduce HIV transmission among adolescents and the youth.

Knowledge related to sexually transmitted diseases in adolescents

“…(16) No se encontró una asociación significativa entre la salud sexual con mejoras en la abstinencia y el uso de preservativos con el número de parejas sexuales, embarazo e ITS. (17) Bossonario et al (19) , identificó en su estudio como factores de riesgo para contraer VIH en adolescentes: la baja escolaridad, etnia negra, múltiples parejas sexuales y el uso inconsistente de preservativo.…”

“…El estudio de Bossonario et al (19) , encontraron una mayor prevalencia en el sexo femenino, de etnia negra como la mayor afectada con respecto a los niveles de infecciones por VIH, ligado a la baja escolaridad, a la mayor cantidad de parejas sexuales, poca utilización de métodos anticonceptivos, además, de un inicio temprano en la vida sexual. Por otra parte, Soltero et al (20), describen que la mayoría de los adolescentes entre 10 y 19 años tienen antecedentes familiares de embarazo precoz, bajos niveles de conocimientos sobre métodos para evitar la transmisión del VIH y las otras infecciones de transmisión sexual.…”