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Are Hormonal Contraceptive Users More Likely to Misreport Unprotected Sex? Evidence From a Biomarker Validation Study in Zimbabwe

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Abstract

We analyzed biomarker validation data of unprotected sex from women in Zimbabwe to determine whether condom and sexual behavior misreporting differs between users of different contraceptive methods. Self-reported sexual behavior was compared with the presence of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in vaginal fluid, a biomarker of semen exposure. Of the 195 women who were PSA positive, 94 (48 %) reported no sex or only condom-protected sex. Hormonal contraceptive users misreported sexual behavior less than women using non-hormonal methods (45 vs. 67 %, P = 0.03). This misclassification pattern could have implications on the elevated risk of HIV infection associated with hormonal contraception in some studies.

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Acknowledgments

Dr. McCoy is supported by the National Institute of Mental Health at the National Institutes of Health (K01MH094246 to S.I.M.). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Mental Health or the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of California, 1918 University Avenue, Suite 3C, Berkeley, CA, 94704, USA

    Sandra I. McCoy, Lauren J. Ralph, Nancy S. Padian & Alexandra M. Minnis

  2. RTI International, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Alexandra M. Minnis

Authors
  1. Sandra I. McCoy
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  2. Lauren J. Ralph
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  3. Nancy S. Padian
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  4. Alexandra M. Minnis
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Correspondence to Sandra I. McCoy.

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McCoy, S.I., Ralph, L.J., Padian, N.S. et al. Are Hormonal Contraceptive Users More Likely to Misreport Unprotected Sex? Evidence From a Biomarker Validation Study in Zimbabwe. AIDS Behav 18, 2259–2264 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-014-0741-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-014-0741-z

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