Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Regarding HPV Vaccination Among Medical and Para Medical in Students, India a Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: High risk human papilloma virus (HPV) types 16 and 18 have been proven as central causes of cervical cancer and safety and immunogenicity of HPV vaccines are sufficiently established. Knowledge and practices of HPV vaccination among medical and paramedical students is vital as these may strongly determine intention to recommend vaccination to others in the future. The present study was therefore undertaken to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding cervical cancer screening and HPV vaccination among medical and paramedical students and to analyze factors influencing them. Materials and Methods: The present cross sectional study, conducted in a tertiary care teaching hospital in south India, included undergraduate students aged 18 years and above, belonging to medical, dental and nursing streams, after informed written consent. Results: Out of 957 participants, only 430 (44.9%) displayed good knowledge and only 65 (6.8%) had received HPV vaccination. Among the unvaccinated, 433 (48.54%), were not willing to take the vaccine. Concerns regarding the efficacy (30.5%), safety (26.1%) and cost of the vaccine (21.7%) were responsible for this. Age, gender, family history of malignancy and mother's education had no influence on knowledge. Compared to medical students, nursing students had better knowledge (OR-1.49, 95% CI 0.96 to 2.3, p = 0.072) and students of dentistry had poor knowledge (OR-0.50 95% CI 0.36 to 0.70, p <0.001). Conclusions: The knowledge and uptake of HPV vaccination among medical and paramedical students in India is poor. Targeted health education interventions may have huge positive impact not only on the acceptance of vaccination among them, but also on their intention to recommend the vaccine in future.

Knowledge and Attitude of Cervical Cancer Screening and its Prophylactic Vaccination Against Human Papillomavirus Among the Undergraduate Medical Students in a Tertiary Care Hospital

“…The percentage of heard about cervical cancer was 96.8% and it was expressed as percentage and it was more in female participants and was concurrent with a study done by swarnapriya et al [6] . However their knowedge was lower than that observed in a study among female health workers in a teaching hospital in northern Nigeria where 98.6% of female health workers had good knowledge about cervical cancer [8].…”

“…In this current study the percentage of male participants was found to be more (50.3%)when compared to female (49.7%) and it may vary between the studies .A study conducted by swarnapriya et al [6] found that female preponderance and it is dissimilar from the current study.…”

“…Being the most effective and newly developed concept of preventing the cancer cervix by early pap smear test and with vaccination, adhering to routine screening of the susceptible female population through periodic Pap smears even in developed countries has been unsatisfactory. And to say that in India the organized screening program and awareness of cervical cancer is less and this lies as a barrier for the women to be screened for cervical cancer when they are presenting to the hospital as a routine basis , [5,6]. So, awareness is essential for its implementation.…”

Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and factors related to intention to obtain the vaccine among young college women in Thailand

“…A recent study conducted at a tertiary institution reported that 9.8 percent of Singaporean women aged between 15 and 22 years had received an HPV vaccine [25]. A cross-sectional study conducted among medical and para-medical students in 2014 also showed better HPV vaccination rates in India; 6.8 percent of Indian college women and men had received the vaccine [26]. At the global level, it is estimated that 39.7 percent of targeted women (between 9 and 45 years) have been vaccinated worldwide [27].…”

Challenges of health promotion and education strategies to prevent cervical cancer in India: A systematic review

“…Overall, 77 papers and one dissertation were eligible for analysis and were listed in the order of publication years. [171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546474849505152535455565758596061626364656667686970717273747576777879808182838485868788899091929394] The review process is explained in Figure 1.…”