Public Knowledge and Attitude toward Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever in Tokat Turkey
Abstract
Background: The World health Organization (WHO) declares Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) endemic in Turkey. Despite the magnitude of problem, no documented evidence exists in Turkey, which reveals the awareness and practices of the country's adult population regarding CCHF, its spread, symptoms, treatment, and prevention. This study was conducted to assess the level of knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding CCHF in people visiting tertiary care hospital in Tokat, Turkey.
Methods: This questionnaire based cross-sectional survey was conducted among patients' relatives or guardians who admitted pediatric outpatient clinics during May-July 2008. The questionnaire was composed of 25 questions.
Results: A total of 1034 respondents participated in the survey. Sufficient knowledge about CCHF was not found in 28.9% of the sample. Literate individuals were relatively better informed about CCHF as compared to the illiterate people. Television and radio were considered as the most important and useful source of information on the disease.
Conclusion: We have found insufficient knowledge on CCHF in our population. It is thought to have no chance of success against a fatal disease such as CCHF, which has serious consequences, without the contribution of community. It is clear that there are important tasks for health, agriculture, and media sectors to improve public knowledge and awareness about CCHF.
Bakir M, Ugurlu M, Dokuzoguz B, Bodur H, Tasyaran MA, Vahaboglu H; Turkish CCHF Study Group (2005) CrimeanCongo haemorrhagic fever outbreak in Middle Anatolia: a multicentre study of clinical features and outcome meas- ures. J Med Microbiol. 54(Pt 4): 385-89.
Bülent Dinçer, Metin Özaslan, Erdoğan Sa- tılmış. İllerin sosyo-ekonomik gelişmişlik sıralaması araştırması (1996) Ankara: DPT. Bölgesel Gelişme ve Yapısal Uyum Genel Müdürlüğü, Aralık 1996. ISBN:975-19-1594-5 (http://ekutup.dpt.gov.tr/bolgesel/din- cerb/il/)
Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever, Fact Sheet No. 208, Dec 1998. www.who.int
Çultu-Kantaroğlu Ö, Yıldırım İ, Ceylan M (2007) The level of public awareness and knowledge about avian influenza in a survey of parents of children admitted to a university children’s hospital. Çocuk Sağlığı ve Hastalıkları Dergisi 50: 180-85.
Ergonul O, Zeller H, Celikbas A, Doku- zoguz B (2007) The lack of Crimean- Congo hemorrhagic fever virus antibod- ies in healthcare workers in an endemic region. Int J Infect Dis. 11(1): 48-51.
Flick R, Whitehouse CA (2005) Crimean- Congo hemorrhagic fever virus. Curr Mol Med. 5(8): 753-60.
Gozalan A, Esen B, Fitzner J, Tapar FS, Oz- kan AP, Georges-Courbot MC (2007). Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever cases in Turkey. Scand J Infect Dis. 39(4):332-336.
Itrat A, Khan A, Javaid S, Kamal M, Khan H, Javed S (2008) Knowledge, aware- ness and practices regarding dengue fe- ver among the adult population of den- gue hit cosmopolitan. PLoS One. 9; 3(7): e2620.
McArthur L, Pena M, Holbert D (2001) Ef- fects of socioeconomic status on the obesity knowledge of adolescents from six Latin American cities. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 25: 1262-1268.
Mossialos E, Rudisill C (2008) Knowledge about avian influenza, European Region. Emerg Infect Dis. 14(12): 1956-1957.
Singh SP, Reddy DC, Mishra RN, Sundar S (2006) Knowledge, attitude, and prac- tices related to Kala-azar in a rural area of Bihar state, India. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 75(3): 505-8.
Sloan SB (2009) Tick Removal: Treatment & MedicationUpdated: Jul 21, 2009 http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1413603-treatment
Vorou R, Pierroutsakos IN, Maltezou HC (2007) Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. Curr Opin Infect Dis. 20(5): 495-500.
Williams RJ, Al-Busaidy S, Mehta FR, Maupin GO, Wagoner KD, Al-Awaidy S (2000) Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever: a seroepidemiological and tick survey in the Sultanate of Oman. Trop Med Int Health. 5: 99-106.
Winch PJ, Leontsini E, Rigau-Pérez JG, Ruiz- Pérez M, Clark GG, Gubler DJ (2002) Community-based dengue prevention programs in Puerto Rico: impact on knowl- edge, behavior, and residential mosquito infestation. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 67(4):363-70.
Yilmaz R, Kundak AA, Ozer S, Esmeray H (2009) Successful treatment of severe Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever with supportive measures without ribavirin and hypothermia. J Clin Virol. 44(2): 181-182.
Files | ||
Issue | Vol 3 No 2 (2009) | |
Section | Articles | |
Keywords | ||
Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever Public knowledge Survey Turkey |
Rights and permissions | |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |