Knowledge about human papillomavirus and associated factors among population in the Republic of Kosova

Abstract

Above 70% of sexually active women and men will be infected with human papilloma irus at some point in their lives, and several may yet be infected in more than one circumstance. Around 80% of sexually active women acquire HPV infection, while for the most part, they are asymptomatic with the immune system-mediated clearance of contagion within 6–12 months. High-risk papillomavirus is accountable for causing cancer associated with the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, penis, and oropharynx. This survey aims to investigate the level of knowledge among residents in the Republic of Kosova regarding human papillomavirus (HPV) infections and HPV-associated diseases and to discover the relationship between these factors. Material and methods: A cross-sectional survey was performed by investigating the knowledge concerning HPV infection in the population aged 18 to 35+ years. The study was conducted in the interval from June 2021 - August 2021. The sample included 500 participants. The questionnaire was anonymous, and participants were free to end the participation at any time, without finishing the questionnaire. Results: More than half of the respondents knew about HPV - 70.0%, and 29.6% did not know. Respondents with secondary and higher education showed 18 times more knowledge for HPV (OR = 18.1311 95% CI: 8.7465-37.5852) than respondents with primary education. To the question Can HPV cause cancer of the cervix, 37.2% (n=186) of the respondents gave a correct answer. The results presented that most participants knew what HPV was (70%), but they also revealed that most participants had low or moderate knowledge about HPV, which was a comparable result with earlier studies. A small number of participants in this survey knew that HPV could heal by itself (12.8%), which was similar to results presented in other surveys. Conclusions: It is important to improve the inadequate knowledge about HPV among the population in the Republic of Kosova. In order to do that, it could be significant to assess which factors affect the knowledge so that young women and all adolescents will get pushed to use protective measures against cervical cancer and have protected sexual behaviour.