Knowledge, attitude and perception regarding dengue fever among university students of interior Sindh.

BACKGROUND: Dengue is among the most common mosquito-borne viral diseases that affect humans. It has now become a major public health dilemma, annually affecting approximately 50-100 million people worldwide. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and perception of dengue fever among university students of interior Sindh. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted during the period of April-June 2012. Four hundred and fifty students were surveyed. A structured pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect data. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 17. RESULTS: Overall, 94.6% of participants (43.3% male and 56.7% female, p-value 0.03) reported that they had heard about dengue, and 58.6% of participants reported "Aedes mosquito" as a vector of dengue virus, with gender difference (37.5% male vs 62.5% females with p-value <0.001). The Aedes mosquito is "A small dark mosquito having white stripes on its leg" was reported by 54.8% students. The Aedes mosquito breeds in "Stagnant clean water" was reported by 47.6% (male 40.2% vs female 59.8%, p-value 0.003) and usually bites at "Dusk" by 44.7% and at "Dawn" by 51%. Regarding symptoms of dengue fever, "Prolonged high fever" was reported by 52.6%, "Muscular pain" by 39.6% (p-value 0.009), "Bleeding" by 41.3% (p-value 0.001) and "Headache, nausea and vomiting" by 44.7% (p-value 0.001). CONCLUSION: Approximately half of the participants in our study were unable to correctly identify the Aedes mosquito as a transmission source (41.4%), its appearance (45.2%), its breeding place (52.4%) and its bite time (52.2%). The enhancement of knowledge through different educational programs is needed to increase awareness of dengue fever.