Predictors of self-reported sexually transmitted infections among Turkish university students.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are among the most crucial health problems that sexually active university students may encounter. This study aims to identify the predictors of self-reported STIs among university students. METHODS: Study participants were 2,241 individuals who reported having had sexual intercourse among a cohort of 9,693 students surveyed from 21 Turkish universities. The age of participants ranged from 17 years to 28 years. RESULTS: The Chi-Square Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID) analysis indicated that gender was the main predictor of self-reported STI. Also, number of partners and substance use were found as predictor variables for males. Finally, the classification accuracy of the CHAID model was found to be 95.3% within the sample. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings shed light on risk factors for STI acquisition, suggesting possible directions for tailoring future preventive interventions.

Transrectal povidone-iodine efficiency in reducing infections occurring after transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy of the prostate.

ABSTRACT: The present study aimed to compare infectious complications in men undergoing transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy (TRUS-Bx) with and without povidone-iodine transrectal injection using a gavage syringe.The records of 112 patients, who underwent TRUS-Bx between January 2016 and December 2019, were retrospectively reviewed. The biopsy indication was considered high prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level and/or suspicious digital rectal prostate examination findings. Patients' ages, underlying diseases, PSA levels, prostate volumes, pathologic results, and infectious complications after the biopsy were investigated. All the patients received 1500 mg of ciprofloxacin (750 mg twice a day) for 5 days, starting from the day before the procedure. Forty-seven (41.96%) patients received ciprofloxacin prophylaxis with povidone-iodine transrectal injection, while 65 (58.03%) only received ciprofloxacin prophylaxis. All the patients, who were readmitted to the hospital after the procedure, especially with a temperature of higher than 37.8°C, were detected. For the purposes of the study, the priority was placed on the emergence of the rate of febrile infectious complications. Differences in febrile infectious complications in patients, who received ciprofloxacin prophylaxis with transrectal povidone-iodine, and those, who received ciprofloxacin prophylaxis alone before TRUS-Bx, were studied.Febrile infectious complications developed in 10 cases (15.38%) in patients, who received ciprofloxacin antibiotics prophylaxis alone. In the povidone-iodine rectal disinfection group, there was only 1 case of febrile infectious complication (2%). There was no significant difference by clinicopathologic features, age, PSA level, and cancer detection rate between both groups (P > .05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis did not identify any patient subgroups at a significantly higher risk of infection after prostate biopsy. There was no significant side effect associated with povidone iodine.In addition to the use of prophylactic antibiotics, transrectal povidone-iodine was useful in reducing the febrile infection complications following TRUS-Bx.

Investigating knowledge levels of university students about infertility.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge levels of university students about infertility and investigate the differences in knowledge levels according to sociodemographic variables and some lifestyle factors. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The sample of the study consisted of 9693 undergraduate students (5002 females, 4691 males) from 12 regions. Regions were determined according to Statistical Region Units Classification-1 criteria. Infertility Knowledge Test (IKT) was used as a data collection tool. RESULTS: It was found that university students' IKT scores significantly differed according to gender (p<0.01); age (p<0.05); body mass index (p<0.05); reproductive health education status (p<0.001), presence of infertile individuals around (p<0.001); having sexual intercourse (p<0.001); smoking (p<0.001) and alcohol consumption frequency (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: University students' lack of knowledge about family planning, effects of age and sexual intercourse timing on infertility was remarkable. However, it was determined that the knowledge level of infertility risk factors related to substance use and body mass index was high. It is believed that increasing the level of knowledge about infertility among individuals will positively effect their awareness of risk factors and facilitate their search for timely medical assistance. Sexual health education can be effective in increasing university students' knowledge of infertility.