Substance use preferences and sexually transmitted infections among Canadian post-secondary students

Figures & data

Table 1 Prevalence of self-reported STIs among sexually active Canadian post-secondary students, Spring 2016

STI	N	%	% of STI
Chlamydia	623	1.98	50.04
Genital warts	336	1.07	27.01
Genital herpes	270	0.86	21.81
Gonorrhea	136	0.43	10.92
HBV/HCV	102	0.32	8.21
PID	100	0.32	8.03
HIV	86	0.27	6.91
Totala	1,250	3.96	–

Note:

a A larger sample size and overlap of frequencies were expected as participants might be co-infected with more than one infection.

Abbreviations: HBV, hepatitis B virus; HCV, hepatitis C virus; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; PID, pelvic inflammatory disease; STIs, sexually transmitted infections.

Table 2 Prevalence of substance use among sexually active Canadian post-secondary students, Spring 2016

Substance use	Categories
	Never used N (%)	Ever used N (%)	Current used N (%)
Alcohol use	2,334 (7.42)	4,110 (13.06)	25,031 (79.53)
Cannabis use	14,968 (47.62)	9,240 (29.39)	7,226 (22.99)
Other drug usea	24,100 (76.34)	4,947 (15.67)	2,521 (7.99)

Notes:

a Use of at least one of the following: cocaine (crack, rock, freebase); methamphetamine (crystal meth, ice, crank); other amphetamines (diet pills, bennies); sedatives (downers, ludes); hallucinogens (LSD, PCP); anabolic steroids (testosterone); opiates (heroin, smack); inhalants (flue, solvents, gas); MDMA (ecstasy); other club drugs (GHB, ketamine, rohypnol); or other illegal drugs.

Abbreviations: GHB, gamma-hydroxybutyrate; LSD, d-lysergic acid diethylamide; MDMA, 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine; PCP, phencyclidine.

Table 3 Demographic characteristics of sexually active Canadian post-secondary students, Spring 2016

Variables	Categories	N (%)
Tobacco use	Never used	17,115 (54.31)
	Ever used	8,081 (25.65)
	Current used	6,315 (20.04)
History of sexual assault in the last 12 months	No	26,994 (85.37)
	Yes	4,626 (14.63)
Multiple sexual partners in the last 12 months	No	21,578 (68.70)
	Yes	9,829 (31.30)
Biological sex	Female	22,306 (70.74)
	Male	9,227 (29.26)
Sexual orientation	Heterosexual	25,183 (79.90)
	Homosexual	849 (2.69)
	Bisexual	2,081 (6.60)
	Othersa	3,407 (10.81)
Age (years)	18–19	6,446 (20.47)
	20–21	8,972 (28.49)
	22–23	5,941 (18.86)
	≥24	10,134 (32.18)
Ethnicity	White	23,458 (74.64)
	Black	823 (2.62)
	Aboriginal	1,463 (4.65)
	Hispanic	722 (2.30)
	Asian	3,014 (9.59)
	Biracial	1,094 (3.48)
	Other	855 (2.72)

Note:

a Asexual, pansexual, queer, questioning, same gender loving another or others.

Table 4 Crude and adjusted associations of substance use and other covariates with self-reported STIs among sexually active Canadian post-secondary students

Variables	Categories	Crude OR (95% CI)	P-value (α=0.25)	Adjusted OR (95% CI)	P-value (α=0.05)
Alcohol use	Never used	1	<0.0001	1	>0.05
	Ever used	0.92 (0.67–1.25)		0.69 (0.50–0.96)
	Current used	1.53 (1.19–1.96)		0.81 (0.61–1.07)
Cannabis use	Never used	1	<0.0001	1	<0.01
	Ever used	1.67 (1.44–1.92)		1.14 (0.96–1.35)
	Current used	2.67 (2.32–3.06)		1.34 (1.12–1.6)
Other drug usea	Never used	1	<0.0001	–	–
	Ever used	2.17 (1.89–2.5)
	Current used	3.87 (3.33–4.5)
Other drug use by biological sex		–	–	–	<0.001
Other drug usea (male)	Never used	–	–
	Ever used			1.12 (0.81–1.54)
	Current used			3.04 (2.27–4.06)
Other drug usea (female)	Never used	–	–	1
	Ever used			1.64 (1.37–1.96)
	Current used			1.87 (1.52–2.30)
Tobacco use	Never used	1	<0.0001	1	>0.05
	Ever used	1.47 (1.28–1.69)		1.02 (0.87–1.20)
	Current used	2.25 (1.97–2.57)		1.13 (0.96–1.33)
Multiple sexual partners in the last 12 months	No	1	<0.0001	1	<0.0001
	Yes	3.57 (3.17–4.00)		2.95 (2.59–3.37)
History of sexual assault in the last 12 months	No	1	<0.0001	1	<0.0001
	Yes	2.46 (2.17–2.79)		1.57 (1.36–1.81)
Age (years)	18–19	1	<0.0001	1	<0.0001
	20–21	1.54 (1.28–1.85)		1.68 (1.39–2.03)
	22–23	1.67 (1.38–2.03)		1.93 (1.57–2.36)
	≥24	1.67 (1.40–2.00)		2.36 (1.95–2.85)
Biological sex	Male	1	<0.01	1	–
	Female	1.19 (1.05–1.36)		–
Sexual orientation	Heterosexual	1	<0.0001	1	<0.0001
	Homosexual	2.51 (1.95–3.23)		2.04 (1.55–2.67)
	Bisexual	1.57 (1.28–1.92)		1.04 (0.85–1.29)
	Otherb	1.35 (1.14–1.61)		1.10 (0.92–1.32)
Ethnicity	White	1	<0.0001	1	<0.05
	Black	1.51 (1.12–2.04)		1.59 (1.15–2.20)
	Hispanic	1.14 (0.95–1.58)		1.34 (0.94–1.91)
	Aboriginal	1.37 (1.08–1.74)		1.24 (0.96–1.59)
	Asian/Pacific Islander	0.69 (0.55–0.87)		0.88 (0.69–1.12)
	Bi/multiracial	1.37 (1.04–1.80)		1.17 (0.87–1.56)
	Other	1.16 (0.83–1.61)		1.09 (0.77–1.55)

Notes: Alcohol use and tobacco use were confounders for the cannabis use and other drug use.

a Use of at least one of the following: cocaine (crack, rock, freebase); methamphetamine (crystal meth, ice, crank); other amphetamines (diet pills, bennies); sedatives (downers, ludes); hallucinogens (LSD, PCP); anabolic steroids (testosterone); opiates (heroin, smack); inhalants (flue, solvents, gas); MDMA (ecstasy); other club drugs (GHB, ketamine, rohypnol); or other illegal drugs.

b Asexual, pansexual, queer, questioning, same gender loving another or others.

Abbreviations: GHB, gamma-hydroxybutyrate; LSD, d-lysergic acid diethylamide; MDMA, 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine; PCP, phencyclidine; STIs, sexually transmitted infections.