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Sexual and reproductive health consequences of COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria: an infodemiological survey
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  • Published: 04 February 2026

Sexual and reproductive health consequences of COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria: an infodemiological survey

  • R. E. Akhigbe1,2,
  • M. A. Hamed2,3,4,
  • D. H. Adeyemi5 &
  • …
  • T. M. Akhigbe2,6 

Scientific Reports , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

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  • Health care
  • Medical research

Abstract

The present study analyzed the internet search behavior of common sexual and reproductive health conditions (such as sex, porn, rape, contraceptive, abortion, sexually transmitted infections, STI, erectile dysfunction, and ED) and their associations with COVID-19. This infodemiological survey employed Google Trends to analyze the internet search behavior of selected sexual and reproductive health conditions in Nigeria from October 1, 2018, to August 1, 2021, which was divided into the pre-COVID and COVID periods on March 1, 2020. The extracted data included search volume index (SVIs) for the top queried state, most populated state, rising queries, and top queries. Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the mean SVIs for the pre-COVID and COVID periods, while Spearman’s rank-order correlation was conducted to determine the association between the sexual and reproductive health indices and COVID-19 using the SPSS statistical package. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant. The online interest in terms such as “how to rape”, “postinor”, “what is sti”, “meaning of sti”, “what is erectile dysfunction”, and “erectile dysfunction treatment” increased during the COVID pandemic compared to the pre-COVID period. Also, the SVIs for rape, contraceptive, abortion, STI, and ED reduced during the pandemic compared to the pre-COVID period. In addition, the SVI for porn increased, while that for sex was unaltered during the pandemic. SVI for COVID was positively correlated with porn but negatively correlated with rape, contraceptive, abortion, STI, and ED. The intent of rape, the need for an emergency contraceptive such as postinor, incident STI and self-diagnosis of STI, and incident ED and self-diagnosis and self-management of STI increased during the pandemic. These findings are associated with increased porn consumption as depicted by a rise in porn SVI. The COVID-19 pandemic considerably influenced internet search behavior related to sexual and reproductive health in Nigeria as shown by an increased interest in certain health queries, such as those related to sexual violence, emergency contraception, and erectile dysfunction, alongside a rise in pornographic content searches. In contrast, there was a decrease in search interest for terms related to contraception, abortion, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). These patterns suggest a complex interplay between increased online engagement with sexual health topics and altered attitudes or behaviors during the pandemic. The findings could inform public health initiatives by highlighting emerging trends and the need for targeted health education and services in the context of evolving sexual and reproductive health concerns during and post-COVID-19.

Data availability

Data will be made available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria

    R. E. Akhigbe

  2. Reproductive Biology and Toxicology Research Laboratory, Oasis of Grace Hospital, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria

    R. E. Akhigbe, M. A. Hamed & T. M. Akhigbe

  3. Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria

    M. A. Hamed

  4. The Brainwill Laboratory, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria

    M. A. Hamed

  5. Department of Physiology, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Osun State University, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria

    D. H. Adeyemi

  6. Breeding and Genetics Unit, Department of Agronomy, Osun State University of Technology, Ejigbo, Osun State, Nigeria

    T. M. Akhigbe

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Contributions

Conception and Design: Akhigbe RE, Akhigbe TMData collection: Akhigbe REValidation: Akhigbe RE and Akhigbe TMDrafting the Article: Akhigbe RE, Akhigbe TM, Hamed MA, and Adeyemi DH.Revision of for Intellectual Content: Akhigbe RE, Akhigbe TM, Hamed MA, and Adeyemi DH.Final Approval of the Completed Article: Akhigbe RE, Akhigbe TM, Hamed MA, and Adeyemi DH.

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Correspondence to R. E. Akhigbe.

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Akhigbe, R.E., Hamed, M.A., Adeyemi, D.H. et al. Sexual and reproductive health consequences of COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria: an infodemiological survey. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-38746-7

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  • Received: 06 January 2024

  • Accepted: 30 January 2026

  • Published: 04 February 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-38746-7

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Keywords

  • Abortion
  • Contraceptive
  • Coronavirus
  • ED
  • Porn
  • Rape
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Sex
  • STI
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