Abstract
Human papillomavirus (HPV), which is linked to specific types of cancer, can be prevented by vaccination. This study aimed to determine the knowledge and attitudes of nursing students about HPV and its vaccine as well as their intentions towards personal vaccination. A total of 536 Spanish nursing students were invited to complete the Spanish version of the questionnaire “Knowledge, attitudes and intentions towards HPV”. Overall, 367 surveys were completed (68.4% response rate). Data analysis included the calculation of three scores: the knowledge score, categorized into low (<33%), moderate (33%–66%), and good knowledge (>66%); the attitude score, sorted into positive (<2.5), neutral (2.5–3.5), and negative attitude (>3.5); and the intention score, categorized into not favorable (<4), neutral (4–7), and favorable intention (>7). Knowledge about HPV and its vaccine was moderate (54.34 ± 0.9%), and the attitude towards vaccination was positive (2.34 ± 0.03). The intention towards personal vaccination increased significantly after completing the questionnaire (before: 4.14 ± 0.27, after: 6.02 ± 0.28; p < 0.001). The present study highlights the need of training future nurses about HPV and its vaccine, considering the important role it plays in the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases.
Highlights
Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection in both sexes.It is estimated that most men and women will contract the infection at some point in their lives [1].HPV is a group of more than 200 viruses of which one-quarter are transmitted directly by sexual, oral, vaginal, or anal contact, even if the carrier is asymptomatic [2]
A total of 367 students of the Degree of Nursing from the USC decided to participate in the study: 118 first-year students, 106 second-year students, 113 third-year students, and
The majority of the nursing students had insufficient knowledge about the etiology, the groups at risk, the diagnosis, and the treatment of HPV infection. These results confirm the necessity to introduce changes in the current curriculum of the Spanish nursing degree in order to increase students’ understanding about HPV and promote positive attitudes towards vaccination. This is the first study carried out in Spain to evaluate the level of knowledge and attitudes of nursing students towards HPV and its vaccine as well as their intentions with respect to the vaccination
Summary
HPV is a group of more than 200 viruses of which one-quarter are transmitted directly by sexual, oral, vaginal, or anal contact, even if the carrier is asymptomatic [2]. According to their oncological pathogenesis, these viruses are classified by risk type into two groups: low and high risk. HPV 6 and 11, the most common low-risk types of HPV, cause genital warts, whilst the high-risk HPV types, among which HPV 16 and 18 stand out, are related to cancer, to cervical, oropharyngeal, anal, vaginal, vulvar, and penile cancers [3]. The most recent data for Spain, extracted from the Cancer
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