Condom use amongst out of school youths in a local government area in Nigeria

Background: Reported low condom use amongst out of school requires studying the context in which condom use occurs. Methods: A cross sectional study of 350 out-of-school youth aged 15-24 years in a local government area of Nigeria was enrolled using cluster sampling. Results: Those who had ever had sexual intercourse were 74.9%. Of these, 56.5% used no protection while 29.0% used condoms. Up to 78.6% have had sex within the preceding 12 months with 38.9% condom use. The commonest reason for non-condom use was that it reduces sexual enjoyment. Those who believed a single unprotected sexual exposure may result in HIV infection reported more condom use than those who believed otherwise (42% vs 27.2%, P 0.05). Those who had prior discussion with their partners on HIV/AIDS reported more condom use compared to those who had not (50% vs 25%, P 0.05). Also, those who had sexual intercourse occurring as a spontaneous event reported less condom use compared to those who have previously discussed about the possibility of having sex (68.0% vs 51.8%, P 0.05). Conclusion: Condom use is likely to occur within relationships where opportunity exists for discussion on sexual matters. Thus, further studies are needed on communication and condom use within sexual partnerships.