RT Book, Section A1 Levine, Leonard J. A1 Taub, Sarah M. A2 Shah, Samir S. SR Print(0) ID 6908941 T1 Chapter 44. Sexually Transmitted Infections in Adolescents T2 Pediatric Practice: Infectious Disease YR 2009 FD 2009 PB The McGraw-Hill Companies PP New York, NY SN 978-0-07-148924-9 LK accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=6908941 RD 2024/03/29 AB According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance survey, nearly one-half of US high school students report ever having had sexual intercourse.1 Over 60% of high school seniors report a history of sexual intercourse, while 20% of seniors report having had at least four sexual partners. Even higher numbers of adolescents engage in other, noncoital sexual behaviors, including oral sex.2–4 Young people age 15–24 years old make up one-fourth of sexually active individuals in the United States, yet acquire nearly one-half of all new sexually transmitted infections (STIs) each year.5 Sexually active adolescents are at high risk for contracting STIs for a variety of reasons. While many adolescents report the use of condoms, they are not necessarily using them consistently or correctly.6,7 They are more likely than adults to experiment with multiple sexual partners,8–10 to engage in riskier sex while under the influence of alcohol or drugs,8,11 to have a poor understanding of STI transmission and consequences of infection,12 and to face barriers to accessing confidential health care.13,14 In addition, the presence of columnar epithelial cells in the cervical ectropion of female adolescents increases susceptibility to infection with certain sexually transmitted organisms.