ABSTRACT
People held in prison are at a high risk of having hepatitis C virus (HCV) and there is a public health drive in the UK to increase HCV testing in prisons and Young Offender Institutions (YOIs), with opt-out testing. There is an oral antibody test for HCV; this project aims to determine its acceptability in an English YOI setting. This project offered HCV oral point-of-care testing (POCT) using the OraQuick® test to 107 male young offenders attending a sexual health service at an English YOI, monitoring HCV positivity and evaluating acceptability. It also investigated young offenders' histories of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and drug use. Mean age was 19.1 years. A total of 80.4% reported lifetime drug use and 0.9% reported lifetime drug injection. A total of 19.6% reported previous STIs. One patient (0.9%) was positive for HCV on OraQuick® testing. All patients found the POCT acceptable and one stated he would have refused a fingerprick test had it been the only test available for HCV testing. Salivary rapid HCV testing is acceptable among English YOI inmates. It is not as sensitive or specific as standard HCV tests and is more expensive. In our cohort, HCV positivity was low.
Subject(s)
Criminals/psychology , Hepacivirus , Hepatitis C/diagnosis , Patient Acceptance of Health Care , Patient Preference , Point-of-Care Testing/statistics & numerical data , Saliva/virology , Adolescent , England , Female , Hepatitis C Antibodies/analysis , Humans , Male , Prisons , Surveys and Questionnaires , Young AdultABSTRACT
Sexual health policy remains focussed on younger adults. However, rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in older people continue to increase. We explored the sexual healthcare needs of women aged 40 and over attending an integrated sexual health clinic in South London. We conducted a retrospective case note review and found that almost 20% of these women had STIs. These included genital herpes, trichomoniasis, genital warts, chlamydia and gonorrhoea. Less than a quarter of women reported use of condoms during most recent sexual contact, indicating sexual risk-taking behaviour. 38% of women attended for contraception. The sexual health needs of older people can only continue to increase, given our rapidly ageing population. Age-specific health promotion strategies are needed.
Subject(s)
Sexual Health , Sexually Transmitted Diseases/epidemiology , Adult , Condoms/statistics & numerical data , Contraception , Female , Health Promotion , Humans , London/epidemiology , Retrospective Studies , Risk-Taking , Sexual Behavior , Sexually Transmitted Diseases/prevention & controlABSTRACT
We present eight cases and review the literature of concurrent urethritis and conjunctivitis where adenovirus was identified as the causative pathogen. The focus of this review concerns the identification of specific sexual practices, symptoms, signs and any serotypes that seem more commonly associated with such adenovirus infections. We discuss the seasonality of adenovirus infection and provide practical advice for clinicians to give to the patient.
Subject(s)
Adenoviridae Infections/diagnosis , Adenoviruses, Human/isolation & purification , Conjunctivitis/diagnosis , Urethritis/complications , Urethritis/diagnosis , Adenoviridae Infections/pathology , Adenoviridae Infections/virology , Adult , Conjunctivitis/pathology , Conjunctivitis/virology , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Urethritis/pathology , Urethritis/virologySubject(s)
Abortion, Incomplete/diagnostic imaging , Bone and Bones/diagnostic imaging , Fetus , Foreign Bodies/diagnostic imaging , Intrauterine Devices , Pregnancy Trimester, Third , Ultrasonography, Prenatal , Abortion, Induced , Adult , Female , Humans , Pregnancy , Ultrasonography, Doppler , Vagina/diagnostic imagingABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND METHODOLOGY: Uptake of the mifepristone/misoprostol combination to induce early medical abortion in England and Wales has been slow. Women's concern that early medical abortion is painful may be a contributory factor. This pilot study evaluated the pain experienced by women when Dilapan-S, a synthetic hygroscopic dilator (polyacrylonitrile) is used instead of mifepristone as cervical preparation prior to administration of a misoprostol. RESULTS: Of 25 patients completing the trial, 17 aborted in a median of 6 hours with an interquartile range of 4.5-11.5 hours. Of these, 15 patients recorded mild discomfort only, 14 considered the procedure excellent and three good. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the Dilapan-S/misoprostol combination reduces the pain associated with early medical abortion. Further investigation of the protocol is merited.