Preventive practices towards Sexually Transmitted Infection and its determinants among young people in Ethiopia: a protocol for a systematic review and Meta-analysis
Abstract Background: Globally, about 178.5 million new cases of curable sexually transmitted infections occur among young people aged 15-24 years. There are fragmented and inconsistent findings on preventive practices of sexually transmitted infection. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of preventive practices of sexually transmitted infection and identify its determinants among young people in Ethiopia. Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) was employed to develop the review protocol. Databases such as PubMed, CINAH, Google, and Google Scholar were used to search published and unpublished studies. Joanna Briggs Institute Meta-Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instrument will be used to assess the quality of the study. Statistical heterogeneity will be checked using I2 statistics. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression will be done to identify the sources of heterogeneity. The statistical analysis will be done using STATA version-14 software. A random-effects model will be employed to estimate the pooled prevalence and identify determinants of preventive practices of sexually transmitted infections. Discussion: Young people have a high unmet need for sexual and reproductive health services and poor preventive practices toward sexually transmitted infection. Although there are studies on the sexually transmitted infection preventive practice, there is no study finding on the pooled prevalence of the preventive practices of sexually transmitted infection and its determinants among young people in Ethiopia. Thus, this systematic review and meta-analysis will help to develop appropriate interventions.