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      Unprotected Sex with Injecting Drug Users among Iranian Female Sex Workers: Unhide HIV Risk Study

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          Abstract

          Purpose. To assess the prevalence and associated factors of unprotected sex with injecting drug users (IDUs) among a sample of female sex workers (FSWs) in Iran. Methods. This cross-sectional study included 144 FSWs who were interviewed as a part of Unhide HIV Risk Study, a national behavioral survey focusing on various high-risk populations, including IDUs, FSWs, and Men who have Sex with Men (MSMs) in 2009. The survey was conducted in eight provinces in Iran using respondent-driven sampling. Participants' sociodemographic status, HIV knowledge, and HIV attitude were analyzed via logistic regression to determine the predictors of unprotected sex with IDU(s) during the past month. Results. Nineteen percent of FSWs reported at least one occasion of unprotected sex with IDU(s) in the month preceding the study. Higher educational level (OR = −0.653, 95%CI = −1.192 to −0.115), perceived HIV risk (OR = −1.047, 95%CI = −2.076 to −0.019), and perceived family intimacy during childhood (OR = −1.104, 95%CI = −1.957 to −0.251) were all independently associated with lower odds of having unprotected sex with IDU(s) in the month preceding the study. Age, marital status, living condition, HIV knowledge, and perceived behavioral control did not affect the odds of FSWs having sex with IDUs. Conclusion. Perceived HIV risk, which is a modifiable factor, seems to be a promising target for harm reduction interventions amongst Iranian female sex workers. Data presented here may aid in reducing or eliminating the role of sex workers as a bridge for HIV transmission from IDUs to the general population in Iran.

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          Assessment of factors affecting the validity of self-reported health-risk behavior among adolescents: evidence from the scientific literature

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            Exposure to domestic violence: A meta-analysis of child and adolescent outcomes

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              Assessment of factors affecting the validity of self-reported health-risk behavior among adolescents: evidence from the scientific literature.

              We reviewed the existing empirical literature to assess cognitive and situational factors that may affect the validity of adolescents' self-reports of alcohol and other drug use, tobacco use, behaviors related to unintentional injuries and violence, dietary behaviors, physical activity, and sexual behavior. Specifically, we searched for peer-reviewed journal articles published in 1980 or later that examined the factors affecting self-report of the six categories of behavior listed above. We also searched for studies describing objective measures for each behavior. Self-reports of each of six types of health-risk behaviors are affected by both cognitive and situational factors. These factors, however, do not threaten the validity of self-reports of each type of behavior equally. The importance of assessing health-risk behaviors as part of research activities involving adolescents necessitates the use of self-report measures. Researchers should familiarize themselves with the threats to validity inherent in this type of assessment and design research that minimizes these threats as much as possible.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                AIDS Res Treat
                AIDS Res Treat
                ART
                AIDS Research and Treatment
                Hindawi Publishing Corporation
                2090-1240
                2090-1259
                2012
                19 March 2012
                : 2012
                : 651070
                Affiliations
                1Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 14548, Iran
                2AIDS Prevention and Control Committee, Welfare Organization State, Tehran, Iran
                3Welfare Organization State, Tehran, Iran
                4Department of Health Behavior, Medicine and Health Promotion Institute, Tehran, Iran
                5Universal Network for Health Information Dissemination and Exchange (UNHIDE), Tehran, Iran
                6Department of Psychology, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran
                7Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
                Author notes

                Academic Editor: Guido Poli

                Article
                10.1155/2012/651070
                3313628
                22506107
                87afc482-e202-419e-88e2-679b3a4667f0
                Copyright © 2012 Khodabakhsh Ahmadi et al.

                This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 29 September 2011
                : 18 December 2011
                : 9 January 2012
                Categories
                Research Article

                Infectious disease & Microbiology
                Infectious disease & Microbiology

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