Ignorance about Chlamydiacompared to gonorrhea infection among sexually active people in Nigeria

Abstract

The principal aim of the study was to determine the level of knowledge of Chlamydia trachomatisinfection compared to gonorrhea infection of individuals visiting a community pharmacy in Port Harcourt city, Nigeria. A self-administered, face validated and pretested questionnaire was used. χ2-Test was used to compare knowledge level of Chlamydiainfections to Neisseria gonorrheainfections. Logistic regression was used to predict association between knowledge level and some demographic variables. A total of 126 consecutive individuals took part in the study. Sixty-four participants (50.8%) had no knowledge of Chlamydiacompared to 2 people (1.6%) who had never heard of gonorrhea (χ2 = 78.9; p < 0.001). Knowledge level of Chlamydiainfection was not associated with any of the demographic variable. Internet (25.8%) and doctors (19.4%) were the major medium through which a greater percentage of the respondents acquired information about Chlamydiainfection. This study showed average knowledge of Chlamydiainfection compared to high knowledge of gonorrhea among sexually active individuals in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Propagation of health education on Chlamydiainfection using simple technology like short message systems, and through social media platforms on the Internet could be a cost-effective approach.