Level of Knowledge and Risk Factors for Visceral Leishmaniasis in a Mining Area of Minas Gerais State, Brazil.

Level of Knowledge and Risk Factors for Visceral Leishmaniasis in a Mining Area of Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Interdiscip Perspect Infect Dis. 2020;2020:6301310 Authors: Margonari C, Menezes JA, Mayr de Lima Carvalho G, Miranda JB, Furtado de Sousa F, Rêgo FD, Campos AM, Monteiro CC, Madureira AP, Andrade Filho JD Abstract Aiming to optimize and adjust leishmaniasis prevention and control measures for the resident population of Pains, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, a structured questionnaire containing conceptual questions and questions about household characteristics was used to evaluate knowledge level and exposure risk. A total of 396 individuals were interviewed revealing unscientific and fragmented knowledge about the subject for most of the studied population. The female population was found to have 1.68 times more chance of knowing about the disease than the male population, while highly educated individuals were found to have 2.92 times more chances of knowing about leishmaniasis compared to basic educated individuals. All of the respondents reported the presence of, at least, one risk factor, while ages ≥40 years were considered a protective factor compared to younger ages, indicating that older individuals are more likely to recognize risks and protect themselves against leishmaniasis. These results will contribute to the production of didactic materials for the population with respect to their previous knowledge and wi...
Source: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Infectious Diseases - Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Interdiscip Perspect Infect Dis Source Type: research