Open AccessSexual Orientation and Related Viral Sexually Transmitted Disease Rates Among US Women Aged 15 to 44 Years
Author(s) -
Guoyu Tao
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2007.112011
Subject(s) - sexual orientation , national survey of family growth , sexually transmitted disease , medicine , demography , sexual behavior , psychological intervention , homosexuality , sexual identity , gerontology , human sexuality , psychology , clinical psychology , family planning , virology , population , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , psychiatry , research methodology , environmental health , social psychology , gender studies , syphilis , sociology , psychoanalysis
I used data from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth to measure sexual orientation and viral sexually transmitted disease (STD) rates among US women aged 15 to 44 years. Sexual behavior and sexual identity data indicated that 1.3% to 1.9% of the women were lesbians and 3.1% to 4.8% were bisexual. Self-reported viral STD rates were significantly higher among bisexual women (15.0% to 17.2%) than among lesbians (2.3% to 6.7%). These findings support the need for STD prevention interventions that consider lesbians and bisexual women separately.