Socioeconomic status and self-reported gonorrhea among African American female adolescents.
BACKGROUND
Socioeconomic status is often used to explain race differences in sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), yet the independent association of socioeconomic status and STDs among adolescents has been understudied.


OBJECTIVE
To examine the associations between socioeconomic status and self-reported gonorrhea among black female adolescents, after controlling for sexual risk behaviors.


METHODS
Interviews and surveys were completed by 522 sexually active black adolescent females residing in low-income urban neighborhoods.


RESULTS
Adolescents whose parents were unemployed were more than twice as likely to report a history of gonorrhea, compared with those with employed parents. Adolescents living with two parents were less likely to report a history of gonorrhea.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study indicate that gonorrhea is associated with low socioeconomic status among black adolescent females regardless of the level of sexual risk behaviors. Lower socioeconomic status may be an marker for risky sociosexual environments.
Sionéan
C
C
Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. csionea@sph.emory.edu
DiClemente
R J
RJ
Wingood
G M
GM
Crosby
R
R
Cobb
B K
BK
Harrington
K
K
Davies
S L
SL
Hook
E W
EW
Oh
M K
MK
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006069:Gonorrhea / Q000208:ethnology*; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012923:Social Class