title: Barriers to sexual history taking in adolescent girls with abdominal pain in the pediatric emergency department.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Sexually transmitted infections are on the rise, yet a sexual history of adolescent girls presenting with abdominal pain is not routinely sought or recorded. We developed a survey to examine the barriers to taking a sexual history.
  
  
  METHODS
  We surveyed 56 medical students and residents rotating through a pediatric emergency department during a 3-month span. Surveys were distributed electronically using Dillman methods, and responses were anonymous.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Although respondents generally believed it was appropriate to routinely take a sexual history from girls as young as 12 years old, in cases where a sexual history was omitted, we found that the young age of the patient, the presence of the patient's parents, and an unsubstantiated belief that the patient was chaste are the barriers to taking a sexual history from adolescent girls presenting to the emergency department with abdominal pain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The barriers to taking a sexual history in adolescent girls are multifaceted. Further training is needed to expose learners' preconceived notions of sexuality as barriers to taking a sexual history, to provide practical methods for overcoming those barriers, and to further instill in learners the importance of doing so.
authors.affiliation: Division of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Family Medicine, The University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Morand
authors.forename: Shelley
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McLeod
authors.forename: Rodrick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lim
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000175:diagnosis*; D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008487:Medical History Taking; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires