SEX RESEARCH UPDATE.

This instalment of "Sex Research Update" summarizes recent research on an intervention to increase female condom use; an HIV risk behaviour change intervention for high school students; the epidemiological characteristics of women with sexual dysfunction who visit sexual health clinics. The sample for the study consisted of 604 women from Baltimore, Seattle, and New York City. Women were eligible for the study if they were HIV negative, aged 17 or older, had vaginal or anal sex with a male partner in the previous three months, and were considered at risk for STI. In the first 3 sessions, the women were provided with HIV information, skills training in communication, goal setting, and use of the male condom. The fourth session emphasized the female condom and included basic information, a video demonstration, a discussion of the advantages of the female condom, and practice inserting the condom using a pelvic model. Population based epidemiological studies indicate that female sexual health problems impact on the lives of large numbers of women. Less is known about the characteristics and sexual health concerns of women who visit outpatient sexual health clinics for evaluation and treatment of sexual difficulties.