STUDY OF DETERMINANTS OF KNOWLEDGE, PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE OF YOUTHS TO SICKLE CELL DISEASE IN SOUTHWEST NIGERIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR FAMILY HEALTH PLANNING AND POLICY
Adeyemi Ogunleye, *Akinwumi Ayodeji Akinbodewa and Oluseyi Ademola Adejumo
ABSTRACT
Backgound: The study was conducted to identify determinant factors associated to knowledge of, perception and attitude to sickle cell disease. Methodology: A total of 1,010 undergraduates of a Nigerian Federal tertiary institution aged 17-37 years participated in this questionnaire-based survey in 2016. Their haemoglobin genotype was determined by standard electrophoresis. Results: Participants included 202 males (20.0%) and 808 females (80.0%). Their mean age was 23.0±2.8 years. Among the respondents, 25.5% had good knowledge of sickle cell disease while 33.6% and 40.9% had average and poor knowledge respectively. Their mean score was 5.54±2.26. Eight hundred and twenty seven (81.9%) participants were not aware of their haemoglobin genotype at the time of the study; 914 (90.6%) were aware that marriage between HbAS pairs could result in a HbSS offspring. One hundred and twenty eight (12.7%) would proceed to marry a partner with HbAS genotype despite having HbAS genotype. Female gender (p=0.001), being a Christian (p=0.013) and studying degree-awarding courses (0.018) were significantly associated to higher mean scores. Conclusion: Knowledge of sickle cell disease was poor. In spite of high awareness level of sickle cell disease, a sizeable portion would proceed with marriage if they and their partners were HbAS. Female gender, Christianity and educational exposure influenced knowledge positively.
Keywords: Determinants, sickle cell disease, knowledge, attitude, youth, Nigeria.
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