1/2020
vol. 3
abstract:
Original paper
Knowledge of HPV, HPV-induced cancers, and HPV vaccine among university students in medical laboratory science disciplines: Nigerian study
Kehinde Kazeem Kanmodi
1
,
1.
Cephas Health Research Initiative Inc., Ibadan, Nigeria
2.
Department of Microbiology, Federal University, Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria
J Obstet Gynecol Investig 2020; 3: e10–e16
Online publish date: 2020/04/14
Introduction Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a leading cause of notorious diseases affecting humans. Students in medical laboratory science disciplines are a population group at high risk of being infected with HPV.
Aim To assess the knowledge of HPV, HPV-induced cancers, and HPV vaccine among university students in laboratory science disciplines, studying at the Federal University, Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria.
Material and methods A cross-sectional survey of 150 students in laboratory science disciplines at the Federal University, Birnin Kebbi was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire obtaining information on their socio-demographic characteristics and knowledge of HPV, HPV-induced cancers, and HPV vaccine. Collected data was analysed using SPSS version 20 software.
Results The majority (52.7%) of the respondents were females. Only 45.3% of them had ever heard of HPV, of whom 26.5% (n = 68) found out about it from internet sources. No significant relationship (p > 0.05) exists between the socio-demographic attributes of the respondents and their awareness of HPV, except for their course of study (p = 0.009). Furthermore, an in-depth assessment of knowledge of these respondents (n = 68) shows that they have huge knowledge gaps on HPV, HPV-induced cancers, and HPV vaccine. Furthermore, there exists statistically significant associations between gender of respondents and their knowledge of: “transmissibility of HPV through sexual intercourse”, “magnitude of risk of having multiple sexual partners”, “extent of protection offered by HPV vaccination”, and “clearance of HPV infections” (p < 0.05).
Conclusions There is a need for school-based education programs targeted at educating students on the prevention strategies that are needed to be HPV free.
keywords:
human papillomavirus, vaccine, cancer, medical, students, knowledge, Nigeria
|
|