Sexual behavior survey and screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea in university students in South Korea.
BACKGROUND
The purpose of the present study was to define the prevalence of genital Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections and status of sexual risk behavior among university students (18-25 years old) in the capital region of South Korea.


METHODS
Participants filled out a self-administered questionnaire related to sexuality. First-void urine was analyzed for chlamydial and gonococcal infection by strand displacement amplification (BDProbTecET, BD Diagnostic Systems, MD).


RESULTS
A total of 622 students from 15 colleges in three universities took part in the study. The median age was 21 and 39.1% of them reported having sexual intercourse at least once. The prevalence of C. trachomatis among sexually active men and women was 8.4% and 10.6%, respectively. Gonococcal infection was noted in one symptomatic male. Factors significantly associated with infection were the number of sexual partners during past year and lifetime and condom use.


CONCLUSIONS
This is the first sexually transmitted infection (STI) screening in university students in South Korea. Urine-based STI screening was both feasible and acceptable in university students in South Korea. It should be considered a routine part of programs to control STI nationally.
Lee
Seung-Ju
SJ
Department of Urology, Catholic University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Cho
Yong-Hyun
YH
Ha
U-Syn
US
Kim
Sae Woong
SW
Yoon
Moon Soo
MS
Bae
Kyunghee
K
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000652:urine; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006069:Gonorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000652:urine; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D009344:Neisseria gonorrhoeae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012747:Sexual Partners; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities