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Behavioral & Social Science

Category: Vaccine acceptance

(P452) Chlamydia and gonorrhea vaccines: Acceptability and barriers among sexual and gender minority young adults

Wednesday, July 26, 2023
16:00 – 18:00 CST


Background: Sexual and gender minority (SGM) young adults (those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or gender diverse) experience health disparities and report high rates of STIs including chlamydia and gonorrhea. Vaccines and other innovative biomedical tools are effective primary prevention strategies and are essential to STI prevention. Candidate vaccines against chlamydia and gonorrhea are under development and evaluating the potential acceptability of these vaccines and barriers to acceptance is integral in preparing for clinical implementation. Vaccine acceptability research among SGM young adult populations is limited, therefore this study examines the perceptions of future chlamydia and gonorrhea vaccines among SGM young adults.



Methods: Sexually active young adults (ages 18-24; n=111) were recruited to participate in an online survey using a national survey panel. Based on previous work of HPV and HIV vaccines (Zimet, 2000, 2005), items included likelihood of receiving a hypothetical: chlamydia vaccine, chlamydia vaccine if recommended by a physician, gonorrhea vaccine, and gonorrhea vaccine if recommended by a physician (response options: not very likely to extremely likely, five-point scale). Participants indicated the factors that would discourage them from getting vaccinated and the strength of those barriers (not at all, a little, a lot; Zimet 2005). Data were analyzed in SPSS.



Results: Approximately 13% identified as gender non-conforming or transgender, 59% were bisexual, and 15% were pansexual, queer, or another sexual orientation. Less than half of the sample (49%) were extremely/very likely to be vaccinated against chlamydia, but increased to 50% with provider recommendation. Similarly, 43% were extremely/very likely to be vaccinated against gonorrhea which increased with provider recommendation (47%). Barriers to vaccination included concern that the chlamydia vaccine would not work (32%) and concern about contracting gonorrhea through the vaccine (30%).



Conclusion: Acceptability of hypothetical chlamydia and gonorrhea vaccines is low among this sample of SGM young adults. Perceived vaccine barriers may differ by bacteria, with concern about chlamydia vaccine effectiveness and misperceptions related to the mode of administration regarding the gonorrhea vaccine as primary barriers. Moving forward, vaccine development, interventions, and inclusive dissemination campaigns should address the specific needs and vaccine barriers among SGM young adults.