Abstract
On average, more than 1,000 individuals will acquire a mosquito-borne disease in Western Australia (WA) each year. Knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) in relation to mosquitoes and mosquito-borne disease have not yet been investigated within Australia. A randomized telephone survey of 2,500 households across 12 regions in WA was undertaken between February and May 2014. The aim of the survey was to obtain baseline KAP data surrounding mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases in different regions of WA, across a range of age groups and between males and females. The results of this survey indicate that the majority of respondents are aware of the potential for mosquitoes in WA to transmit Ross River virus, while awareness of other endemic mosquito-borne diseases remains limited. Common misconceptions exist in relation to exotic mosquito-borne diseases, with respondents incorrectly identifying malaria and dengue as endemic diseases in WA. The survey also highlighted a range of important issues, such as limited awareness of the potential for backyard breeding in domestic containers, occupational exposure to mosquitoes in regions with a large employment base in the mining and resources sector, increased exposure to mosquitoes as a result of participation in outdoor recreational activities in the north of the State, and reduced awareness of mosquito-borne disease in individuals aged 18–34 years. The results of this study will be used to inform the development of a new communication strategy by the Department of Health, to further raise awareness of mosquito-borne disease in WA. The data will then provide a baseline against which to compare future survey results, facilitating the rigorous evaluation of new communication efforts.
Highlights
Each year, more than one billion people are infected and more than one million die from a mosquito-borne disease [1]
As age was one of the variables used to weight the survey data, the 47 respondents who did not provide their age were excluded from the analysis, reducing the total sample size included in the statistical analysis to 2,453
No respondents claimed that it was because of a dislike for chemical use. The results of this survey indicate that the majority of respondents are aware of the potential for mosquitoes in Western Australia (WA) to transmit River virus (RRV)
Summary
More than one billion people are infected and more than one million die from a mosquito-borne disease [1]. In Western Australia (WA), individuals are at risk of acquiring the debilitating diseases caused by Ross River virus (RRV), Barmah Forest virus (BFV), West Nile virus strain Kunjin (WNVKUN), and the potentially fatal Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus. RRV (Togaviridae: Alphavirus) is the most common mosquito-borne pathogen in WA, causing fever, rash, arthralgia, and myalgia in clinically affected people [2,3,4]. MVE is a rare but potentially fatal disease associated with a range of neurological signs, occurring in the northern half of WA [6]. WNVKUN is much less common, with only five cases of the disease being reported in WA since 2000, the last occurring in 2006 [7]
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