Prevalence and associated factors of sexually transmitted infections among unmarried undergraduate university students

Background Many young university students are sexually active, but unable to properly handle the responsibilities that come with having sexual intercourse. This could lead to higher rates of sexually transmitted infections. Such behaviours may be because many of these students are becoming independent for the first time as they enter university. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the prevalence and factors associated with the rate of sexually transmitted infections among a cohort of young unmarried university students in a developing country, Ghana. Method This survey used a convenience sampling method to recruit a large number of undergraduate university students from Ghana. A modified Core Expanded Questions of the Global School-based Student Health Survey [GSHS] questionnaire was used for data collection on sexual behaviours that contribute to HIV/STI and unintended pregnancies. Frequencies, percentages, chi-square, and binary logistic regression were used to analyse the data. Results The results revealed that out of the 10,896 students, 5,448 (50%) were male and 5,448 (50%) were female. Overall, 4,124 (37.8%) students were sexually active, whereas 6,772 (62.2%) were not. Among the sexually active unmarried students, 1,506 (36.5%) reported having ever been infected with at least one STI, mostly gonorrhea and syphilis. Furthermore, females (n = 835:62.2%), students aged 20–24 years (n = 838;62.4%), level 200s (n = 443;33.0%), and level 300s (juniors) (440;32.8%), Christians (n = 1007;75%), non-resident students (n = 798;59.0%), those with low socioeconomic status (912;67.9) and those who did not use condom at their last sexual intercourse (897;66.8%) were more likely to be infected with at least an STI. Students aged 20–24 years (AOR = 3.620, 95%CI = 2.435–5.382), those aged 25 years and above (AOR = 1.457, 95%CI = 1.237–1.716), and those at level 300 (juniors)(AOR = 1.038, 95%C.785-1.373) were more likely to suffer from STI. Moreover, Muslims students (AOR = 1.88, 95%CI = 1.312–2.703), students from other religions (AOR = 1.390, 95%CI = .939-2.056), those who engaged in anal sex (AOR = 1.351, 95%CI = 1.123–1.624), those who did not use condom during their last sexual encounters (AOR = 1.355, 95%CI = 1.03–1.665) and those whose friends were sexually active (AOR = 3.713, 95%CI = 2.132–6.468) were more likely to report infection with STIs. Conclusion There is a high prevalence of STIs among unmarried young university students in Ghana because of an increase in risky sexual behaviours. Unfortunately, this is making the fight against HIV/AIDS and other deadly STIs complicated. Thus, institution-based health education and promotion programmes are required to lower the risk of STIs, including HIV/AIDS, among the students. These findings pose challenges to achieving SDGs 3 and 17, which highlight the need for worldwide collaboration and accelerated efforts to curb STIs by 2030.