Behavior modification following STD infection.

The persistence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the US is largely a function of the complex behavioral aspects of the disease acquisition process. To investigate STD risk behaviors data from the 1991 National Survey of Men were utilized with oversampling to allow sufficient representation of Black men. Of the 3321 respondents (1238 Black and 2083 non-Black) 494 (14%) reported ever having an STD. (Separate analyses were conducted for gonorrhea--the most common STD in the US.) 25% of these men (13% of those with gonorrhea) had sexual intercourse while they were infected and 85% (86% for gonorrhea) informed their partners they were infected. After treatment 70% (76% for gonorrhea) returned to their physician for retesting. After recovery 20% (21% for gonorrhea) stopped having sex with more than one partner and 33% (44% for gonorrhea) avoided having sex with partners not well known. 23% (24% for gonorrhea) initiated condom use and 19% (20% for gonorrhea) began using condoms more often. On the other hand 29% of men with an STD history (22% in the gonorrhea group) reported they made no behavioral changes after the STD episode. White men those who were single at the time of infection men with more than a high school education and the non-religious were significantly less likely to change their post-infection sexual behavior. These findings can be used to identify groups in need of STD prevention interventions.