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moominmuppethttp://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2007/09/14/news.qp-8087465.sto
IU researchers find problems with condoms
Limited choice of sizes can lead to condom failure, increasing risk of STDs, pregnancy
By Dann Denny 331-4350 | ddenny@heraldt.com
9/14/2007
When it comes to condoms, size does matter — and picking the right size could help prevent unwanted pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease.
That is the conclusion of three Indiana University researchers, based on two recent studies they conducted involving nearly 2,000 men.
The studies found that men who said they had problems with the fit and feel of condoms not only said they were less likely to wear condoms, but reported higher rates of condom breakage and slippage than those who felt their condoms fit properly. Use of a tight or loose condom, or failure to use one at all, can result in unwanted pregnancies and the spread of sexually transmissible infections, such as chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV.
And a limited choice of sizes in the condoms market may be part of the reason that as many as half the men who use them don’t get a proper fit, the researchers said.
“Most recent research has focused on how people use condoms with little attention to the physical characteristics of condoms themselves,” said Michael Reece, director of the Sexual Health Research Working Group and an associate professor in Indiana University’s department of applied health science. “Our research indicates that sizes and shapes of the penis vary widely, but the range of condom sizes is rather limited.”
Reece said men frequently tell health-care professionals the reason they don’t wear condoms is that they don’t fit properly.
“We’ve made the mistake of assuming these men are bragging about their penis size, so we try to convince them by stretching a condom over a forearm or piece of fruit,” he said. “But what some of these men are really saying is that condoms are too large.”
Reece said data that takes into account the range of penis sizes suggests that condoms fit well on only about 50 percent of men in the U.S. He said condoms are probably too small for about 25 percent of men, and too large for the remaining 25 percent.
The two studies, one involving 1,800 men and another looking at 178, were conducted by Reece and two colleagues — Debby Herbenick and Brian Dodge, each an associate director of SHRWG and research associate in the department of applied health science.
The IU researchers found that among the men in their studies, 21 percent said condoms felt too tight; 18 percent said condoms felt too short; 10 percent said condoms felt too loose; and 7 percent said condoms felt too long.
Reece said semen can escape from loose-fitting condoms, and that condoms that are too tight or too short can cause them to break during intercourse.
“If condoms are too long, men say they stop using them because they pull on their pubic hair, which they find uncomfortable,” Reece said.
Reece said that in the U.S., the vast majority of condoms purchased are standard-sized.
“There is a ‘magnum’ condom marketed for bigger sized men and a ‘kimono’ for smaller sized men,” he said. “There’s been a lot of marketing with the magnum, because it’s easier to sell men on the notion that their penis is bigger than normal. It’s not so easy to market the idea to a man that he has a smaller penis.”
To be sure, a quick look in a Bloomington CVS store found plenty of magnum condoms — but no kimonos.
“Kimono condoms are more available online and through specialty retailers,” Reece said.
The real problem, Reece said, is that the difference in size between magnum, kimono and standard-size condoms is not that significant. He thinks more size options are needed.
Questionnaire
Meanwhile, because most physicians and their male patients find it awkward discussing the patient’s penis size, Reece, Dodge and Herbenick have developed a questionnaire designed to help health-care professionals broach the subject and encourage men to use better-fitting condoms.
The free questionnaire, called the Condom Fit and Feel Scale, contains such questions as “Do condoms feel too tight on the head of your penis?” and
“Do you have any unrolled condom left at the base of your penis after it’s applied?”
Herbenick said the scale “offers a way for men to express in a confidential way to health-care providers the exact concerns they have with condoms related to length, width, tightness or looseness.”
Reece said he and his colleagues would be glad to send the free scale to health-care practitioners, particularly those working in HIV, sexually
transmissible infection and pregnancy prevention programs. Those interested in obtaining the scale should visit the Web site
www.sexualhealth.indiana.edu.
Reece said their Condom Fit and Feel Scale also could be helpful to condom manufacturers, who continue to work to develop and market more comfortable condoms, which ultimately results in their more effective use.
“We’ve already discussed with condom manufacturers the data we collected in creating the scale,” Reece said.”We hope it will help them in offering a wider variety of condoms for men to choose from.”
On the Web
Condom Fit and Feel Scale, a free questionnaire developed by Indiana University researchers, can be obtained by visiting the Web site
www.sexualhealth.indiana.edu.
- 1 -
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2007/09/14/news.qp-8087465.sto
A quick check of the shelves in a Bloomington CVS store found plenty of regular and large or “magnum”-sized condoms, but no small or
“kimono”-sized condoms for sale. Jeremy Hogan | Herald-Times
- 2 -
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2007/09/14/news.qp-8087465.sto
Michael Reece, director of the Sexual Health Research Working Group and an associate professor in Indiana University’s department of
applied health science. Courtesy photo
- 3 -
IU researchers find problems with condoms
Limited choice of sizes can lead to condom failure, increasing risk of STDs, pregnancy
By Dann Denny 331-4350 | ddenny@heraldt.com
9/14/2007
When it comes to condoms, size does matter — and picking the right size could help prevent unwanted pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease.
That is the conclusion of three Indiana University researchers, based on two recent studies they conducted involving nearly 2,000 men.
The studies found that men who said they had problems with the fit and feel of condoms not only said they were less likely to wear condoms, but reported higher rates of condom breakage and slippage than those who felt their condoms fit properly. Use of a tight or loose condom, or failure to use one at all, can result in unwanted pregnancies and the spread of sexually transmissible infections, such as chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV.
And a limited choice of sizes in the condoms market may be part of the reason that as many as half the men who use them don’t get a proper fit, the researchers said.
“Most recent research has focused on how people use condoms with little attention to the physical characteristics of condoms themselves,” said Michael Reece, director of the Sexual Health Research Working Group and an associate professor in Indiana University’s department of applied health science. “Our research indicates that sizes and shapes of the penis vary widely, but the range of condom sizes is rather limited.”
Reece said men frequently tell health-care professionals the reason they don’t wear condoms is that they don’t fit properly.
“We’ve made the mistake of assuming these men are bragging about their penis size, so we try to convince them by stretching a condom over a forearm or piece of fruit,” he said. “But what some of these men are really saying is that condoms are too large.”
Reece said data that takes into account the range of penis sizes suggests that condoms fit well on only about 50 percent of men in the U.S. He said condoms are probably too small for about 25 percent of men, and too large for the remaining 25 percent.
The two studies, one involving 1,800 men and another looking at 178, were conducted by Reece and two colleagues — Debby Herbenick and Brian Dodge, each an associate director of SHRWG and research associate in the department of applied health science.
The IU researchers found that among the men in their studies, 21 percent said condoms felt too tight; 18 percent said condoms felt too short; 10 percent said condoms felt too loose; and 7 percent said condoms felt too long.
Reece said semen can escape from loose-fitting condoms, and that condoms that are too tight or too short can cause them to break during intercourse.
“If condoms are too long, men say they stop using them because they pull on their pubic hair, which they find uncomfortable,” Reece said.
Reece said that in the U.S., the vast majority of condoms purchased are standard-sized.
“There is a ‘magnum’ condom marketed for bigger sized men and a ‘kimono’ for smaller sized men,” he said. “There’s been a lot of marketing with the magnum, because it’s easier to sell men on the notion that their penis is bigger than normal. It’s not so easy to market the idea to a man that he has a smaller penis.”
To be sure, a quick look in a Bloomington CVS store found plenty of magnum condoms — but no kimonos.
“Kimono condoms are more available online and through specialty retailers,” Reece said.
The real problem, Reece said, is that the difference in size between magnum, kimono and standard-size condoms is not that significant. He thinks more size options are needed.
Questionnaire
Meanwhile, because most physicians and their male patients find it awkward discussing the patient’s penis size, Reece, Dodge and Herbenick have developed a questionnaire designed to help health-care professionals broach the subject and encourage men to use better-fitting condoms.
The free questionnaire, called the Condom Fit and Feel Scale, contains such questions as “Do condoms feel too tight on the head of your penis?” and
“Do you have any unrolled condom left at the base of your penis after it’s applied?”
Herbenick said the scale “offers a way for men to express in a confidential way to health-care providers the exact concerns they have with condoms related to length, width, tightness or looseness.”
Reece said he and his colleagues would be glad to send the free scale to health-care practitioners, particularly those working in HIV, sexually
transmissible infection and pregnancy prevention programs. Those interested in obtaining the scale should visit the Web site
www.sexualhealth.indiana.edu.
Reece said their Condom Fit and Feel Scale also could be helpful to condom manufacturers, who continue to work to develop and market more comfortable condoms, which ultimately results in their more effective use.
“We’ve already discussed with condom manufacturers the data we collected in creating the scale,” Reece said.”We hope it will help them in offering a wider variety of condoms for men to choose from.”
On the Web
Condom Fit and Feel Scale, a free questionnaire developed by Indiana University researchers, can be obtained by visiting the Web site
www.sexualhealth.indiana.edu.
- 1 -
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2007/09/14/news.qp-8087465.sto
A quick check of the shelves in a Bloomington CVS store found plenty of regular and large or “magnum”-sized condoms, but no small or
“kimono”-sized condoms for sale. Jeremy Hogan | Herald-Times
- 2 -
http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2007/09/14/news.qp-8087465.sto
Michael Reece, director of the Sexual Health Research Working Group and an associate professor in Indiana University’s department of
applied health science. Courtesy photo
- 3 -
