HPV Vaccination and Knowledge of Cervical Cancer among Female University Students in a Multiethnic Institution, USA
Journal Title: Epidemiology – Open Journal - Year 2017, Vol 2, Issue 1
Abstract
Objective: College-aged women are at high-risk of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Although, HPV vaccination is most effective, its rates remain quite low among college students. It may be due to inadequate understanding of the relationship between HPV and cervical cancer. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the level of knowledge about HPV, cervical cancer and their associations with HPV vaccination among female college students. Methods: Cross-sectional questionnaire based survey was conducted among female students in a Multiethnic University in Florida. We assessed HPV vaccination status, annual health checkup status, knowledge about HPV and cervical cancer among the students. The response rate for the survey was 91.5%. Results: Out of 141 students, 39.7% received HPV vaccine, and 38.3% did annual medical checkup within a year. Out of 4, the mean and the median knowledge score of students about cervical cancer was 2.87 and 3.0, respectively. A greater percentage of students who did annual health checkup (44%) received HPV vaccine than those who did not (15%). The odds of receiving HPV vaccine was nearly 5 times as much for the students who achieved knowledge scores about causes of cervical cancer greater than or equal to the median compared with the students with knowledge scores below the median (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]:4.85, 95% confidence interval [CI]:2.15, 10.92). The odds of receiving HPV vaccine was almost three times as much of students who knew that HPV causes cervical cancer than those who did not know it to be so (aOR:2.9, 95% CI:1.1, 8.2). Conclusion: Receipt of HPV vaccination was associated with knowing that HPV infection is a cause of cervical cancer and that it’s preventable. HPV vaccination was also associated with annual health checkup status.
Authors and Affiliations
Nasar U. Ahmed
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP553571
- DOI 10.17140/EPOJ-2-111
- Views 186
- Downloads 0
Another Approach to Detect Malaria Epidemics and to Evaluate the Impact of their Control Measures in Situation of Lack of Information
The purpose of this study is to establish a theoretical epidemiologic threshold for the rate of reported malaria cases in order to detect epidemics and evaluate the impact of control measures. To create this epidemiologi...
Risk Factor Prevalence and their Relative Influence on Fatty Liver and Gallstone Disease: A Cross-Ethnic Study Comparing Two High-Risk Populations from Chile and Northeast Germany
Objective: Fatty Liver Disease (FLD) and Gallstone disease (GSD) are among the most common gastrointestinal disorders worldwide. Based on data of two ethnically distant populations from Santiago de Chile and Northeast Ge...
Consumption of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Associated With Increased Odds of Depression
Objective: To evaluate the association between depression and sugary drink intake using participant data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS). Design: Cross-sectional data from the 2012 and 2013 BR...
We Should be Optimistic about Mosquito-Borne Diseases Control
Mosquito-borne diseases are those spread by the bite of an infected mosquito, and they include Zika, West Nile fever, Chikungunya, dengue, yellow fever, malaria, etc. Nearly 700 million people worldwide get a mosquito-bo...
The Association of Weight Status with Dental Caries and Trachoma Among School Children in Cities of Changsha and Shenzhen, China
Dental caries and trachoma are two common diseases among children in developing countries. To examine whether weight status is associated with these two diseases, we used data from two screening surveys conducted in Chan...