Opinion dynamics on prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections against the background of COVID-19 pandemic

Prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is built mainly as work with young people. This is due to the fact that individuals under the age of 35 years old dominate in the age structure of newly detected cases of this category of diseases, and most of the manageable risk factors for the spread of STIs are relevant for this age group [1-3]. Extensive examination of published data and expert evaluation of risk factors and their properties revealed that modifiable factors of public opinion and social wellbeing impose crucial impact on the sexual lifestyle, which determines the epidemiological processes of STIs [4–6].

Against the background of COVID-19 pandemic in 20202021, there have been significant changes in state policy, public life and social wellbeing of the population, which a number of authors have already described as unprecedented [7]. Restrictions imposed on mass events and the transfer of educational institutions to a remote mode of operation have significantly reduced the potential of traditional health education of young people in organized groups [8]. Against the background of the inevitable focus on coronavirus topics in the work of the official media, the role of informal Internet community in shaping public opinion on general health issues has increased [9]. Meanwhile, different authors gave opposite conclusions about the changes that occurred in the attitude of the population to public health issues and prerequisites for their formation. Among positive changes, there was an increase in the perception of diseases as a public rather than a personal problem [10]; an increasing attention to personal health and its value [11]; an increase of interest in medical information, respect and trust in doctors [12]; rallying of a certain part of the population around government structures, and the intensification of volunteer activities in the field of health care [13, 14]. The development of such attitudes was always considered the goal of preventing all diseases.

At the same time, other studies focused on the development of reverse trends, designated as risk factors that reduced the effectiveness of preventive work. It was noted that people’s attention to their health was manifested mainly

2022. Volume 3. Issue 2 (June). Article CID e0204

in relation to the symptoms of coronavirus [15]. Under the influence of large-scale restrictive measures and their consequences for the economy and social sphere, manifestations of dissatisfaction with official state institutions, including the healthcare system, are currently growing, and the variety of alternative information sources in social networks activates medical dissidence [9, 16, 17].

The coexistence of opposing changes in public opinion has been noted not only in Russia, but in other countries as well, including the results of studies of past smaller-scale epidemics and other social upheavals [16, 18, 19].