Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country

<h3>Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Zika virus, an emerging serious infectious disease, is a threat to persons living or travelling to regions where it is currently endemic, and also to contacts of infected individuals. The aim of this study was to assess knowledge about this...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Sohaila Cheema (4162534) (author)
Other Authors: Patrick Maisonneuve (479793) (author), Ingmar Weber (149886) (author), Luis Fernandez-Luque (3572423) (author), Amit Abraham (5534822) (author), Hekmat Alrouh (5534828) (author), Javaid Sheikh (5534825) (author), Albert B. Lowenfels (9934156) (author), Ravinder Mamtani (4162537) (author)
Published: 2017
Subjects:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1864513557073231872
author Sohaila Cheema (4162534)
author2 Patrick Maisonneuve (479793)
Ingmar Weber (149886)
Luis Fernandez-Luque (3572423)
Amit Abraham (5534822)
Hekmat Alrouh (5534828)
Javaid Sheikh (5534825)
Albert B. Lowenfels (9934156)
Ravinder Mamtani (4162537)
author2_role author
author
author
author
author
author
author
author
author_facet Sohaila Cheema (4162534)
Patrick Maisonneuve (479793)
Ingmar Weber (149886)
Luis Fernandez-Luque (3572423)
Amit Abraham (5534822)
Hekmat Alrouh (5534828)
Javaid Sheikh (5534825)
Albert B. Lowenfels (9934156)
Ravinder Mamtani (4162537)
author_role author
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Sohaila Cheema (4162534)
Patrick Maisonneuve (479793)
Ingmar Weber (149886)
Luis Fernandez-Luque (3572423)
Amit Abraham (5534822)
Hekmat Alrouh (5534828)
Javaid Sheikh (5534825)
Albert B. Lowenfels (9934156)
Ravinder Mamtani (4162537)
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2017-07-26T03:00:00Z
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv 10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Knowledge_and_perceptions_about_Zika_virus_in_a_Middle_East_country/27082744
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv CC BY 4.0
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Health sciences
Epidemiology
Public health
Zika virus
Infection
Flavivirus
Education
Survey
Epidemiology
Qatar
Middle East
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv Text
Journal contribution
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
text
contribution to journal
description <h3>Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Zika virus, an emerging serious infectious disease, is a threat to persons living or travelling to regions where it is currently endemic, and also to contacts of infected individuals. The aim of this study was to assess knowledge about this new public health threat to persons residing in a Middle Eastern country.</p><h3>Methods</h3><p dir="ltr">We conducted a survey at several international universities in Qatar to assess knowledge and awareness about this disease. An adapted version of the survey was also conducted using online channels from Qatar.</p><h3>Results</h3><p dir="ltr">The median age of the 446 participants, was 25 years, 280 (63%) were females, and 32% were from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) or other Middle East countries. Based upon their knowledge about availability of a vaccine, role of mosquitoes and other modes of transmission, and disease complications, we classified respondent’s knowledge as “<i>poor</i>” (66%), “<i>basic</i>” (27%) or “<i>broad</i>” (7%). Forty-five (16%) persons with poor knowledge considered themselves to be well-informed.</p><h3>Conclusions</h3><p dir="ltr">This report from a sample of persons associated with Middle East educational complex, reveals inadequate knowledge about Zika virus, a serious emerging infectious disease. Although few cases have been reported from the region, future cases are possible, since this area is a transit hub connecting currently infected regions to North America, Europe and Asia. As a preventive measure, an educational program about Zika virus would be valuable, especially for individuals or family members travelling to afflicted regions.</p><h2>Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: BMC Infectious Diseases<br>License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a>  <br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6</a></p>
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
id Manara2_843b194fa4fbfc7ab59c94850a2b0d3f
identifier_str_mv 10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6
network_acronym_str Manara2
network_name_str Manara2
oai_identifier_str oai:figshare.com:article/27082744
publishDate 2017
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository_id_str
rights_invalid_str_mv CC BY 4.0
spelling Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East countrySohaila Cheema (4162534)Patrick Maisonneuve (479793)Ingmar Weber (149886)Luis Fernandez-Luque (3572423)Amit Abraham (5534822)Hekmat Alrouh (5534828)Javaid Sheikh (5534825)Albert B. Lowenfels (9934156)Ravinder Mamtani (4162537)Biomedical and clinical sciencesClinical sciencesHealth sciencesEpidemiologyPublic healthZika virusInfectionFlavivirusEducationSurveyEpidemiologyQatarMiddle East<h3>Background</h3><p dir="ltr">Zika virus, an emerging serious infectious disease, is a threat to persons living or travelling to regions where it is currently endemic, and also to contacts of infected individuals. The aim of this study was to assess knowledge about this new public health threat to persons residing in a Middle Eastern country.</p><h3>Methods</h3><p dir="ltr">We conducted a survey at several international universities in Qatar to assess knowledge and awareness about this disease. An adapted version of the survey was also conducted using online channels from Qatar.</p><h3>Results</h3><p dir="ltr">The median age of the 446 participants, was 25 years, 280 (63%) were females, and 32% were from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) or other Middle East countries. Based upon their knowledge about availability of a vaccine, role of mosquitoes and other modes of transmission, and disease complications, we classified respondent’s knowledge as “<i>poor</i>” (66%), “<i>basic</i>” (27%) or “<i>broad</i>” (7%). Forty-five (16%) persons with poor knowledge considered themselves to be well-informed.</p><h3>Conclusions</h3><p dir="ltr">This report from a sample of persons associated with Middle East educational complex, reveals inadequate knowledge about Zika virus, a serious emerging infectious disease. Although few cases have been reported from the region, future cases are possible, since this area is a transit hub connecting currently infected regions to North America, Europe and Asia. As a preventive measure, an educational program about Zika virus would be valuable, especially for individuals or family members travelling to afflicted regions.</p><h2>Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: BMC Infectious Diseases<br>License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a>  <br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6</a></p>2017-07-26T03:00:00ZTextJournal contributioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersiontextcontribution to journal10.1186/s12879-017-2603-6https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Knowledge_and_perceptions_about_Zika_virus_in_a_Middle_East_country/27082744CC BY 4.0info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:figshare.com:article/270827442017-07-26T03:00:00Z
spellingShingle Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
Sohaila Cheema (4162534)
Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Health sciences
Epidemiology
Public health
Zika virus
Infection
Flavivirus
Education
Survey
Epidemiology
Qatar
Middle East
status_str publishedVersion
title Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
title_full Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
title_fullStr Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
title_full_unstemmed Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
title_short Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
title_sort Knowledge and perceptions about Zika virus in a Middle East country
topic Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Health sciences
Epidemiology
Public health
Zika virus
Infection
Flavivirus
Education
Survey
Epidemiology
Qatar
Middle East