Sexually Transmitted Disease Partner Notification among African-American, Adolescent Women

OBJECTIVE To better understand preferences and practices regarding partner notification of sexually transmitted infection (STI) among female, African-American adolescents. METHODS Participants completed a questionnaire and STI testing at baseline. Those diagnosed with Chlamydia or gonorrhea were recruited for a follow-up study, involving another questionnaire and repeat STI testing after three months. RESULTS At baseline, most participants (85.1%) preferred to tell their partner about an STI diagnosis themselves instead of having a health care provider inform him, and 71.0% preferred to bring their partner for clinic treatment instead of giving him pills or a prescription. Two-thirds of participants were classified as having high self-efficacy for partner notification of a positive STI diagnosis. In the multivariable analysis, older participants and those with fewer lifetime sexual partners were more likely to have high self-efficacy. Ninety-three participants (26.6%) had Chlamydia or gonorrhea and, of this subset, 55 participated in the follow-up study. Most adolescents in the follow-up study (76.4%) notified their partner about their infection. CONCLUSION Although participants were willing to use most methods of partner notification, most preferred to tell partners themselves and few preferred expedited partner therapy. Traditional methods for partner notification and treatment may not be adequate for all adolescents in this population.