PMID- 14562596
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20031120
LR  - 20061115
IS  - 0008-9176 (Print)
IS  - 0008-9176 (Linking)
VI  - 49
IP  - 1-2
DP  - 2003 Jan-Feb
TI  - Highly symptom-aware children were heavily infected with urinary schistosomiasis 
      in southern Ghana.
PG  - 16-9
AB  - OBJECTIVES: To assess the relationship between the infection status of children 
      and their knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and practices (KABP) related to urinary 
      schistosomiasis. DESIGN: Questionnaire survey. SETTING: Nine schools in eight 
      rural communities (total population: 4,636) in Ga and South Akuapem Districts, 
      Ghana. SUBJECTS: Four hundred and six children attending primary and secondary 
      schools. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Schistosoma haematobium infection status of 
      children and their KABP. RESULTS: Of 354 children who responded and also 
      submitted their urine samples, 297 (83.9%) tested positive for S. haematobium and 
      the intensity of infection was 90 (95% CI: 74 to 110) eggs per 10 ml urine. 
      General knowledge variables such as the knowledge of symptoms (p < 0.001), and 
      knowledge of swimming or bathing in the river as a transmission route (p < 0.001) 
      showed significant association for higher prevalence and intensity of infection. 
      Treatment-seeking behaviour was not associated with the lower prevalence or 
      intensity of infection. Practice variables such as washing clothes in the stream 
      (p < 0.001) and fishing in the stream (p < 0.01) were significantly associated 
      with both higher prevalence and higher intensity of infection. Children who knew 
      of contact with river water as a transmission route reported more water contact 
      activities (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study showed that highly symptom-aware 
      people were heavily infected, and people frequently exposed to infested water 
      were heavily infected. Moreover, highly symptom-aware people never constituted a 
      group whose exposure was slight. Why was awareness of disease symptoms and 
      general knowledge of the disease not linked to low infectivity? Why didn't 
      awareness result in avoidance of infested water sources? This report highlights 
      the urgent need to address these important questions in future research.
FAU - Wagatsuma, Y
AU  - Wagatsuma Y
AD  - Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public 
      Health, 615 N Wolfe Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA. ywagats@icddrb.org
FAU - Aryeetey, M E
AU  - Aryeetey ME
FAU - Nkrumah, F K
AU  - Nkrumah FK
FAU - Sack, D A
AU  - Sack DA
FAU - Kojima, S
AU  - Kojima S
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
PL  - Zimbabwe
TA  - Cent Afr J Med
JT  - The Central African journal of medicine
JID - 0372566
SB  - IM
MH  - Adolescent
MH  - Analysis of Variance
MH  - Chi-Square Distribution
MH  - Child
MH  - Child, Preschool
MH  - Female
MH  - Ghana/epidemiology
MH  - *Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
MH  - Humans
MH  - Male
MH  - Schistosomiasis/epidemiology/*urine
EDAT- 2003/10/18 05:00
MHDA- 2003/12/03 05:00
CRDT- 2003/10/18 05:00
PHST- 2003/10/18 05:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2003/12/03 05:00 [medline]
PHST- 2003/10/18 05:00 [entrez]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Cent Afr J Med. 2003 Jan-Feb;49(1-2):16-9.