Knowledge of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Factors Associated with Condom Use Among Adolescents in Northeast Brazil

AIM: To assess the knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention and factors associated with condom use among adolescent. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 410 outpatient adolescents. Association between knowledge on the transmission of HIV/AIDS and variables were analyzed using the chi-square test. Logistic regression model was used to estimate the factors associated to condom use. RESULTS: The knowledge about HIV/AIDS transmission was high and lower percentages of knowledge were observed regarding the non-transmission of HIV/AIDS. Younger adolescents revealed less knowledge than older adolescents. After multiple logistic regression the following factors were associated with condom use: male gender (p = 0.029), same age between partners (p = 0.002) and having until 1 year elapsed since sexual initiation (p = 0.001). CONCLUSION: The knowledge regarding HIV/AIDS prevention was satisfactory. However, this does not imply that adolescents put such knowledge to use.