Volume 8, Issue 3, September 2014, Pages 1370–1376
Aravind Patil1, Fogue Foguito2, Gayathri Balasubramanian3, Ngalamou Flore4, Endele Paul Patrick5, and Arun Gowda6
1 Focus Scientific Research Center of Phamax AG, #19, KMJ Ascend, 1st Cross, 17th C Main, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 095, India
2 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
3 Focus Scientific Research Center of Phamax AG, #19, KMJ Ascend, 1st Cross, 17th C Main, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 095, India
4 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
5 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
6 Focus Scientific Research Center, Phamax AG, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Introduction: Viral hepatitis affects millions of people around the globe. The burden of disease is significantly higher in developing countries such as those in Africa. Lack of awareness coupled with inadequate information about the disease amongst general public is the major reason for the spread of infection. Awareness of the disease can help in building advocacy and improving access to care. In order to assess the awareness levels of hepatitis among general public in Cameroon, we designed and conducted a cross-sectional study.
Materials and Methods: The objective of the study was to assess the awareness of hepatitis in a set population of Cameroon. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a small population in Cameroon. A total of 88 people aged between 18 to 70 years participated in the survey.
Results: On a scale of 0 to 10 the average awareness level of the survey respondents was 5.38. Although the results indicated that the survey participants had some knowledge about hepatitis, it was observed that there was lack of awareness in some key areas of the disease such as modes of transmission and vaccination. There is a need for initiatives at a population level to increase the awareness about viral hepatitis, modes of transmission, treatment and prevention in Cameroon.
Author Keywords: Awareness, Hepatitis, Knowledge, Cameroon, Africa.
Aravind Patil1, Fogue Foguito2, Gayathri Balasubramanian3, Ngalamou Flore4, Endele Paul Patrick5, and Arun Gowda6
1 Focus Scientific Research Center of Phamax AG, #19, KMJ Ascend, 1st Cross, 17th C Main, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 095, India
2 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
3 Focus Scientific Research Center of Phamax AG, #19, KMJ Ascend, 1st Cross, 17th C Main, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 095, India
4 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
5 Positive-Generation, Yaoundé Ngoa Ekelle, Near University of Yaoundé, P.O. Box: 8908 Yaoundé 14, Cameroon
6 Focus Scientific Research Center, Phamax AG, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Introduction: Viral hepatitis affects millions of people around the globe. The burden of disease is significantly higher in developing countries such as those in Africa. Lack of awareness coupled with inadequate information about the disease amongst general public is the major reason for the spread of infection. Awareness of the disease can help in building advocacy and improving access to care. In order to assess the awareness levels of hepatitis among general public in Cameroon, we designed and conducted a cross-sectional study.
Materials and Methods: The objective of the study was to assess the awareness of hepatitis in a set population of Cameroon. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a small population in Cameroon. A total of 88 people aged between 18 to 70 years participated in the survey.
Results: On a scale of 0 to 10 the average awareness level of the survey respondents was 5.38. Although the results indicated that the survey participants had some knowledge about hepatitis, it was observed that there was lack of awareness in some key areas of the disease such as modes of transmission and vaccination. There is a need for initiatives at a population level to increase the awareness about viral hepatitis, modes of transmission, treatment and prevention in Cameroon.
Author Keywords: Awareness, Hepatitis, Knowledge, Cameroon, Africa.
How to Cite this Article
Aravind Patil, Fogue Foguito, Gayathri Balasubramanian, Ngalamou Flore, Endele Paul Patrick, and Arun Gowda, “Hepatitis awareness among the general public in Cameroon: A survey study,” International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 1370–1376, September 2014.
