Knowledge, Attitude and practices of the population in sennar city, sudan , regarding dengue fever and its prevention measures : Community based cross sectional study

Abstract

Abstract Background : Dengue fever (DF) is now widespread throughout tropical and subtropical nations , There have been DF outbreaks during the last few years in Sudan, Up to now there is a lack of information regarding the awareness, attitudes, and practices of the population for DF protection in their settings, the aim of this study is to apply KAP model about DF among adults in sennar state in central sudan as one of the expected risk areas for the DF . Methods: The cross-sectional study conducted in selected area with high population in sennar city in sudan, from 1st to 15th of jan 2023, We used face-to-face interviews to collect data, The main analytical procedure was descriptive using frequencies. Results: Even though the majority of respondents (79.4%) had heard about dengue, they still have misconceptions about the breeding grounds for Aedes, more than half of the participants (64.3%) believed incorrectly that Aedes can breed in contaminated water and 21% were aware that Aedes mosquito usually bites around sunrise and sunset. Fever indication was identified by 45% of people which is the most common symptom of dengue .The level of education of the respondents was found to be an independent predictor of both knowledge and awareness of dengue among the socio-demographic factors. Although there was a significant correlation between knowledge and preventative behaviors, the degree of preventive practice was moderately less than the knowledge level ,according to our study, TV and radio are the most effective primary sources of information regarding preventive practices. Conclusion: in this study most of the participant have a positive background on various aspects of the disease, and apply appropriate preventive practices against DF, Health education via various media should be continued to raise community awareness and dispel misconceptions regarding DF .