Aenishaenslin Cécile, Ravel André, Michel Pascal, Gern Lise, Milord François, Waaub Jean-Philippe, Bélanger Denise
Groupe de Recherche en Épidémiologie des Zoonoses et Santé Publique (GREZOSP), Pavillon de la santé publique, Faculté de médecine vétérinaire, Université de Montréal, CP 5000, Saint-Hyacinthe J2S 7C6, Québec, Canada.
BMC Public Health. 2014 Dec 18;14:1298. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-1298.
Lyme disease (LD) is a tick-borne emerging disease in Canada that has been endemic in many temperate countries for decades. Currently, one of the main approaches for LD prevention is the promotion of individual-level preventive behaviors against ticks. Health behaviors are influenced by individual and social factors, one important of which is risk perception. This study aims to describe and compare risk perception of LD, within and between general populations and experts living in two different regions: the Neuchâtel canton in Switzerland, where LD is endemic, and the Montérégie region in Québec (Canada), where LD is emerging.
A web-based survey was conducted in both study regions (814 respondents) in 2012, and a questionnaire was administered to 16 experts. Comparative analyses of knowledge, risk exposure and different components of LD risk perception were performed. Multivariate analyses were used to calculate a global risk perception score and to identify determinants of risk perception in both regions.
In Montérégie, only 15% of the survey respondents had a good level of knowledge of LD compared to Neuchâtel where 51% of survey respondents had good levels of knowledge. In Montérégie, 24% of respondents perceived themselves as being at high or very high risk of contracting LD vs 54% in Neuchâtel; however, a higher percentage of respondents from this region believed that personal protection was simple to carry out (73% vs 58% in Montérégie). Based on the population surveys, almost all of the identified determinants of risk perception were different between both populations except for gender. A good level of knowledge, living in the risk zone and knowing someone who has had LD increased risk perception, while a high level of education and being 18-34 years of age decreased this perception. The majority of the studied components of risk perception were different between populations and their regional experts.
This study suggests that risk perception of LD differs between populations and regional experts living in different epidemiological situations. Monitoring of knowledge and risk perception in local populations may help to better target LD communication efforts in accordance with population specific attributes thereby enhancing prevention efficacy.
莱姆病（LD）是一种由蜱传播的新发疾病，在加拿大出现，在许多温带国家已流行数十年。目前，预防莱姆病的主要方法之一是推广针对蜱虫的个人层面预防行为。健康行为受个人和社会因素影响，其中一个重要因素是风险认知。本研究旨在描述和比较生活在两个不同地区的普通人群和专家对莱姆病的风险认知，这两个地区分别是瑞士纳沙泰尔州（莱姆病流行地区）和加拿大魁北克省蒙特利尔地区（莱姆病新发地区）。
2012年在两个研究地区（共814名受访者）开展了一项基于网络的调查，并向16名专家发放了问卷。对知识、风险暴露和莱姆病风险认知的不同组成部分进行了比较分析。采用多变量分析计算总体风险认知得分，并确定两个地区风险认知的决定因素。
在蒙特利尔地区，只有15%的受访者对莱姆病有良好的认知水平，而在纳沙泰尔地区这一比例为51%。在蒙特利尔地区，24%的受访者认为自己感染莱姆病的风险高或非常高，而在纳沙泰尔地区这一比例为54%；然而，该地区更高比例的受访者认为个人防护易于实施（73%，而在蒙特利尔地区为58%）。基于人群调查，除性别外，几乎所有已确定的风险认知决定因素在两个群体之间都有所不同。良好的知识水平、生活在风险区域以及认识患莱姆病的人会增加风险认知，而高学历和年龄在18 - 34岁则会降低这种认知。风险认知的大多数研究组成部分在人群及其地区专家之间存在差异。
本研究表明，生活在不同流行病学状况下的人群和地区专家对莱姆病的风险认知存在差异。监测当地人群的知识和风险认知可能有助于根据人群的特定属性更好地确定莱姆病宣传工作的目标，从而提高预防效果。
