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Sex Education Needs of Japanese People with Spina Bifida: Relation to Participants’ Demographics

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the sex education needs of people with spina bifida through their responses to a questionnaire. The questionnaire was disseminated to people with spina bifida between the ages of 18 and 40 years. Of the 436 questionnaires distributed, we received 48 valid responses (11.0%). The questionnaire included items related to demographic characteristics and preferences regarding the content of sex education. Twenty-two options were created to ascertain the desired content of sex education. These items were classified into the eight key concepts (KCs) specified by the International Technical Guidelines for Sexuality Education. T-tests were conducted for the eight KCs and gender, age, diagnosis, presence of hydrocephalus, physical function, and dating experience. Overall, most participants wanted to be educated on “KC1 Relationships” and “KC4 Violence and Staying Safe.” Participants under 30 years of age wanted to be educated on “KC6 The Human Body and Development.” Participants diagnosed with spina bifida aperta and those who used diapers/pads preferred to be educated on “KC2 Values, Rights, Culture, and Sexuality” and “KC3 Understanding Gender.” Those who had been in a relationship preferred education in “KC3 Understanding Gender,” “KC5 Skills for Health and Well-being,” and “KC8 Sexual and Reproductive Health.” Considering these results, we should enhance sex education for people with spina bifida.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to express our gratitude to all of our research collaborators and research cooperating institutions and organizations for their cooperation.

Funding

This work was supported by JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists 20K19175.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nursing, Ibaraki Prefectural University of Health Sciences, 4669-2 Ami, Ami-Machi Inashiki-Gun, Ibaraki, Japan

    Kumi Kasai & Hiroshi Fujioka

  2. Wellness Longevity Division, Health Promotion Department, Ryugasaki City, Ibaraki, Japan

    Tomoya Unno

Authors
  1. Kumi Kasai
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  2. Tomoya Unno
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  3. Hiroshi Fujioka
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by KK and TU. Data analysis and the first draft of the manuscripts was written by KK. TU and HF checked data analysis. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Kumi Kasai.

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There are no conflict of interest to declare.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Ethical Committee of the Ibaraki Prefectural University of Health Sciences, and the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Kasai, K., Unno, T. & Fujioka, H. Sex Education Needs of Japanese People with Spina Bifida: Relation to Participants’ Demographics. Sex Disabil 40, 807–818 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-022-09763-x

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