Risk perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of chikungunya among the public and health professionals: a systematic review

Abstract

BackgroundRecently, attention to chikungunya has increased due to its spread into previously non-endemic areas. Since there is no available treatment or vaccine, most intervention strategies focus on mosquito bite prevention and mosquito control, which require community involvement to be successful. Thus, our objective was to systematically review the global primary literature on the risk perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of chikungunya among the public and health professionals to inform future research and improve our understanding on which intervention strategies are likely to be successful.MethodsPotentially relevant articles were identified through a standardized systematic review (SR) process consisting of the following steps: comprehensive search strategy in seven databases (Scopus, PubMed, CINAHL, CAB, LILACS, Agricola, and Cochrane) and a grey literature search of public health organizations, relevance screening, risk of bias assessment, and data extraction. Two independent reviewers performed each step. Reporting of this SR follows PRISMA reporting guidelines.ResultsThirty-seven relevant articles were identified. The majority of the articles were published since 2011 (83.8%) and reported on studies conducted in Asia (48.7%) and the Indian Ocean Islands (24.3%). The results were separated into four categories: general knowledge and perceptions on chikungunya; perceptions on the risk and severity of chikungunya; knowledge of chikungunya-harboring vectors and transmission; and knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes on mitigation practices. Overall, the systematic review found that risk perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of chikungunya among the public and health professionals vary across populations and countries and knowledge is higher in areas that have experienced an outbreak.ConclusionThe results suggest that most of the affected populations in this study do not understand mosquito borne diseases or chikungunya and are therefore less likely to protect themselves from mosquito bites. While more research is required to improve the generalizability of this dataset, it appears that a lack of knowledge is an important barrier for motivating community level interventions and personal protection against mosquitoes.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s41182-017-0061-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Predicting Chikungunya disease personal protective behaviors: Results of a cross-sectional survey of US-Caribbean travelers

“…One systematic review showed that risk perceptions, attitudes, and knowledge of chikungunya varied across populations and countries (the review, however, also largely represented Asian regions where the disease is endemic). 30 However, among U.S. populations at risk to vector-borne or infectious diseases, significant relationships have been identified between perceived severity and indicators of heightened risk perception. 10 Additionally, a broad review of protective behavior literature supports the general concept that higher appraisals of perceived risk influence health behavior.…”

Knowledge of Chikungunya Disease among Academic Population in Private Universities, Khartoum State, Sudan - 2019

“…CHIKV disease has symptoms that simulate common symptoms of malaria disease which is the most endemic communicable disease in Sudan and it might mask the presence of Chikungunya [21]. Chikungunya malaria the symptoms of fever, body pain, headache and arthralgia and it should be distinguished by further serological tests [21 Knowing detailed information about the disease and its mode of transmission would control and management strategies particularly among medical students and health related professionals [22]. Most of the study population did not know the morbidity and mortality characteristics of CHIKV disease where the disease has low mortality, high morbidity and economic loss [23].…”

Low to medium-low risk perception for dengue, chikungunya and Zika outbreaks by infectious diseases physicians in France, Western Europe

“…This is the first study on the perception of the present and future risk of vector-borne diseases (i.e., dengue, [33][34][35][36], H1N1pdm flu [37][38][39] and H5N1 avian flu [40][41][42]; others have focused on general practitioners in France [43][44][45], both general population and practitioners [46], French pharmacists [47] or risk perception in Europe and other countries worldwide [48][49][50]. The appearance of various emerging infectious diseases during the last two decades (e.g., chikungunya, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, Ebola virus, Zika), as well as that of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, has stimulated research on risk perception in the general public and policy-makers [51][52][53][54][55].…”