Online ahead of Print ; 8 3 :e Background: Homeless women are at high risk of sexually transmitted infections STIs due to their adverse early-life experiences. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between adverse early-life experiences and the risk of acquiring STIs among homeless women in Tehran. Patients and Methods: A descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was carried out in The study recruited homeless women through quota sampling from the drop in centers and shelters affiliated to a local welfare organization in Tehran, Iran.
Data were obtained using questionnaires on demographics and adverse early-life experiences. Blood and urine samples were tested for human immunodeficiency virus HIV , herpes simplex virus 2 HSV-2 , syphilis, Chlamydia trachomatis , and Neisseria gonorrhea. Descriptive statistics including frequency were calculated for all variables.
To analyze the data at a significance level of 0. Conclusions: Homeless women had high rates of adverse early-life experiences and overall Future interventions should focus on the reduction of adverse early-life experiences, especially during adolescence, including the promotion of adolescent empowerment, promotion of condom use, and improvement of awareness of STIs.
Sexually transmitted infections STIs are one of the most common infections in adults and a major global health concern 1. STIs can cause acute conditions such as cervicitis, urethritis, genital ulceration, pelvic inflammatory disease, chronic pelvic pain, ectopic pregnancy, infertility, neurological disorder, and cardiovascular diseases in adults, neonatal death, premature delivery, blindness, and severe disability in infants 2.
Several risk factors and markers are associated with infections, including individual factors 3 , social and institutional contexts, in particular unsafe sexual behavior, drug use, discrimination and social inequality 4 , 5 , poor access to healthcare services 6 , and prevalence of infections in sexual networks 7 , 8. All these factors strongly affect homeless women in Iran 9 and in other countries 5 , 6 , Homeless women are considered a hidden population of Iranian society since there are no accurate statistics regarding their population There is little information on the prevalence rate, risk factors, and other aspects of STIs to guide specific preventive measures for homeless women Given the significance of homeless women in the Iranian society and the lack of previous research, this study was conducted to examine the association between the risk of STIs and adverse experiences during childhood and adolescence among homeless women in Tehran.
