Abstract
Zika infection, an otherwise usually mild disease, is of serious public health concern due to the potential teratogenic effects of the virus. The incidence of Zika infection is difficult to document since it is mostly asymptomatic and detection of those carrying Zika is usually not possible. Currently, there is no vaccine for Zika; therefore, use of personal preventative measures is the only method of avoiding transmission. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between knowledge of Zika transmission and the use of preventive measures among Latinas of childbearing age who lived in or near farm-working communities in South Florida. A secondary data analysis was performed on a cross-sectional study, sampling 100 Latina women aged 18–50 years. Sixty-nine percent demonstrated a high degree of knowledge of Zika transmission, and 68% were categorized as taking good preventative measures. Women with high knowledge were 5.86 times more likely to take good preventative measures than those with no knowledge (p-value = 0.05). Knowledge was associated with more preventative measures. Therefore, it is essential to further investigate this relationship in order to develop effective public health interventions for this population.
Highlights
Zika virus is an arbovirus belonging to the Flavivirus genus and the Flaviviridae family [1]
It was found that 7% of participants had no knowledge of Zika transmission, 24% had low knowledge of Zika transmission, and 69% had a high knowledge of Zika transmission
Women with either low or high knowledge are approximately six times more likely to take good preventative measures than those without knowledge. This result supports the current literature on Zika prevention and provides insight for future studies to suggest public health interventions based on our results
Summary
Zika virus is an arbovirus belonging to the Flavivirus genus and the Flaviviridae family [1]. Similar to dengue and yellow fever, Zika infection is mainly transmitted by Aedes aegypti. The first cases of human infection were reported in Africa, the disease spread to Southeast Asia [2]. Infection has since widely spread throughout the Americas. In February of 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Zika a public health emergency of international concern due to the link between Zika and neurological birth defects [3,4]. A Zika infection during the gestational period of pregnancy is associated with central nervous system abnormalities such as microcephaly among newborns and other birth defects such as hearing loss and abnormal eye development. Public Health 2019, 16, 1257; doi:10.3390/ijerph16071257 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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