Zika Testing Behaviors and Risk Perceptions Among Pregnant Women in Miami-Dade County, One Year After Local Transmission.

Abstract

This study sought to describe the knowledge and perceptions of pregnant women in Miami-Dade County concerning Zika virus (ZIKV) in their community, to characterize their testing behaviors, and to identify any barriers that would keep them from seeking testing. The Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County partnered with the Healthy Start Coalition of Miami-Dade to administer an assessment survey in eight OBGYN clinics from June to August 2017. The survey captured past ZIKV testing practices, attitudes towards testing, barriers to testing, risk perception of ZIKV in the participants' community, and ZIKV-related knowledge. Descriptive analyses were performed on variables of interest. Chi squared tests examined associations between categorical variables. A total of 363 participants were included in the analysis. Of these, 203 (55.9%) thought they should be tested for ZIKV, and less than half of the participants reported having been previously tested (152, 41.9%). Participants with some high school education were significantly more likely than those with higher education levels to see ZIKV as a "big problem" in the community (p = 0.0026). There was a significant association (p ≤ 0.0001) between women who thought that they should be tested, and those who perceived ZIKV to be a medium or big problem in their community. Health interventions that focus on increasing ZIKV knowledge should also place greater emphasis on risk communication when targeting the pregnant population. Having a higher risk perception may be more predictive of testing behaviors than having a lack of barriers or a high level of ZIKV-related knowledge.