Impact of 2009 Pandemic H1N1 Influenza A Virus on Veterinary Students' Perception of Xenotransplantation

Abstract

The pandemic influenza virus A (H1N1) in 2009, which was initially associated with pigs (swine flu), could have had a negative influence on attitudes toward xenotransplantation (XT), particularly after the social alarm it caused. The objective of this study was to analyze the impact of this pandemic on the acceptance of XT among veterinary science students. MethodsA control group sample was taken of students registered in the veterinary degree course (academic year 2007–2008). For the study group, the study was repeated on the same students (year 2008–2009) after the pandemic (April 2009). Pair-matching was carried out between both groups taking into account that (1) the questionnaire was anonymous but included the student's initials and (2) when the study was repeated, the students were in the next academic year. Attitude was assessed using a validated questionnaire. ResultsAfter comparing the surveys from the control group (n = 515) and study group (n = 465), 287 matched pairs were obtained. Acceptance of organ XT did not differ significantly before and after the outbreak, assuming similar results to those using human organs (89% vs 89%; P = .10) or with a greater risk than human donation (10% vs 13%; P = .37). There was no difference between the attitude toward tissue XT before and after (94% vs 93%; P = .69) and toward cell XT (97% vs 98%; P = .30); 82% (n = 236) believed that the pandemic had not changed their perception of XT, although 43% (n = 124) considered that it had negatively affected society's perception. ConclusionThe pandemic influenza virus A (H1N1) did not change the attitude of veterinary science students toward XT.