title: A systematic review of alcohol use and sexual risk-taking in Latin America.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide an account of published literature on the association between alcohol use and sexual risk-taking, focusing on Latin America.
  
  
  METHODS
  A search of MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, LILACS, and Cochrane databases identified 561 unique articles. After excluding those that were not directly relevant, 30 studies were retained for review.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-seven studies showed direct or indirect associations between alcohol abuse and unprotected/risky sex. Three studies, however, showed no association between these variables, suggesting that the public health message of safer sex may have been effective.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Further research is needed to identify factors and behaviors that could be modified to reduce the association between alcohol use disorders and risky sexual behavior.
authors.affiliation: Section of Infectious Diseases, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, , panagiotis.vagenas@yale.edu.
authors.forename: Panagiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vagenas
authors.forename: Javier R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Lama
authors.forename: Kaysia T
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Ludford
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gonzales
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sanchez
authors.forename: Frederick L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Altice
mesh_terms: D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007843:Latin America / Q000453:epidemiology; D012309:Risk-Taking; D047568:Unsafe Sex / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*