Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
Int J Womens Health. 2011;3:313-7. doi: 10.2147/IJWH.S22792. Epub 2011 Sep 13.
Persistent infection with high-risk types of human papillomavirus (HPV) is a prerequisite for the development of cervical cancer. Highly immunogenic HPV vaccines have been developed and licensed for the primary prevention of cervical cancer in some developed and developing countries. This calls for assessment of the knowledge of the HPV infection and the acceptability of the HPV vaccines among health care providers.
The aim of this study was to assess awareness and knowledge of HPV infection and vaccines and to assess attitude toward these vaccines among female nurses at Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos, Nigeria.
The study was a cross-sectional, descriptive study using a pretested, structured, anonymous, self-administered, 19-item questionnaire.
A total of 178 female nurses were interviewed during a 4-week period. The mean age of respondents was 37.1 ± 3.1 years. Almost all (99.4%) of the respondents had heard of cervical cancer, while about 85% of them had heard of HPV infection. Only a quarter (25.3%) of respondents had heard of the HPV vaccines, and of those only 26.7% knew the vaccines were for the prevention of cervical cancer. Most (70.2%) of the nurses expressed a desire to be vaccinated and 120 (67.4%) supported the vaccination of preadolescent girls. Those who expressed a willingness to be vaccinated were more likely to recommend HPV vaccination for preadolescent girls.
Overall, there was a poor knowledge of the HPV vaccines among female nurses at Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Despite this poor knowledge, most of the nurses expressed a strong desire to be vaccinated and their intention to recommend it for preadolescent girls. The main reason given overall for not recommending the vaccines was lack of information. There is an urgent need to bridge this information gap.
高危型人乳头瘤病毒（HPV）的持续感染是宫颈癌发展的前提。在一些发达国家和发展中国家，已经开发并获得许可了具有高度免疫原性的 HPV 疫苗，用于宫颈癌的一级预防。这就需要评估卫生保健提供者对 HPV 感染和 HPV 疫苗的认识以及对这些疫苗的可接受性。
本研究旨在评估尼日利亚拉各斯大学教学医院女性护士对 HPV 感染和疫苗的认识和知识，并评估她们对这些疫苗的态度。
这是一项横断面描述性研究，使用了经过预先测试的、结构化的、匿名的、自我管理的、包含 19 个项目的问卷。
在四周的时间内，共采访了 178 名女性护士。受访者的平均年龄为 37.1 ± 3.1 岁。几乎所有（99.4%）的受访者都听说过宫颈癌，而约 85%的人听说过 HPV 感染。只有四分之一（25.3%）的受访者听说过 HPV 疫苗，而其中只有 26.7%的人知道疫苗是预防宫颈癌的。大多数（70.2%）护士表示希望接种疫苗，120 人（67.4%）支持为青春期前女孩接种疫苗。那些表示愿意接种疫苗的人更有可能推荐 HPV 疫苗用于青春期前女孩。
总体而言，拉各斯大学教学医院的女性护士对 HPV 疫苗的了解程度较差。尽管知识水平较低，但大多数护士表示强烈希望接种疫苗，并打算推荐为青春期前女孩接种疫苗。总体而言，不推荐疫苗的主要原因是缺乏信息。迫切需要弥合这一信息差距。
