Evaluation of sexual violence among lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between sexual orientation and sexual violence in Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico. METHODS: Secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study. An anonymous web-based questionnaire was distributed in Puerto Rico between February and April 2016. Variables included history of sexual violence, sexual orientation, and age of first sexual experiences. Data were analyzed using χ2 testing and a P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: Sociodemographic characteristics were similar between groups except for age in the 476 participants. The most common age of first sexual experiences was between 7 and 12 years, 13-18 years for penile vaginal and oral sex, and 22-29 years for penile anal sex in the overall population of the study. These did not differ except that more bisexual women 40 (71.4%) had their first oral sex experience at 13-18 years compared with 164 (50.7%) heterosexual and 35 (55.2%) lesbian women (P = 0.045). Of the 19.2% of participants who reported sexual violence, there were 50 (18.4%) heterosexual, 8 (12.2%) lesbian, and 17 (34.7%) bisexual women. Bisexual women were more likely to disclose sexual violence (P = 0.007). CONCLUSION: Most women stated having a sexual experience at a young age. Significant proportions reported sexual violence with bisexual women being the most likely. Screening for sexual violence must be routinely performed by health professionals.

Psychosexual Impact on a Sample of Hispanic Women With Human Papillomavirus.

OBJECTIVES: Our study investigates the psychosexual impact of human papillomavirus (HPV) diagnosis and its associated conditions on Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted on 205 women between 21 and 65 years old who received services at the Gynecology Clinics of the Medical Sciences Campus from April 2019 to December 2019. After obtaining approval from the institutional review board (March 27, 2019) and the informed consent of participants, participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and 4 psychological symptomatology-based questionnaires that measured levels of anxiety, depression, sexual satisfaction, and self-esteem. RESULTS: Of the participants, 48.8% had a known diagnosis of HPV ( n = 100) compared with 51.2% without a known HPV diagnosis ( n = 105). A Mann-Whitney U test analysis for independent samples was used, which showed that patients with known HPV diagnoses had higher reported levels of anxiety in the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale with a statistical significance of 0.03, as compared with patients without a known HPV diagnosis. There was no significant difference in reported levels of depressive symptoms, self-esteem, or sexual satisfaction between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that in this group of Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico, being diagnosed with HPV and its associated conditions can be associated with higher anxiety symptoms. Further studies are warranted in this population to help improve their health outcomes and access to proper primary and preventive care.