Sexual health interventions for young people in state care: a systematic review

To describe evaluated sexual health interventions for young people in state care and provide an assessment of the quality of and evidence for these interventions.

A systematic review of sexual health interventions for young people in state care was conducted. Randomised controlled trials and quasi-experimental designs were eligible, 2051 records were screened, 412 full-text studies retrieved, and 12 publications with low-to-moderate risk of bias included.

Due to substantial heterogeneity in study populations, settings, intervention approaches, outcomes and measures, standard summary measures for intervention outcomes was not used. Instead, data were synthesised across studies and presented narratively.

Without making recommendations, the result suggests that group-based educational interventions in general increase knowledge, attitudes and behaviour compared with standard care. However, these findings need to be further investigated, with a special emphasis on cultural context and the involvement of young people.