Omodior Oghenekaro, Luetke Maya, Kianersi Sina, Colón Alec
Department of Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Studies, Indiana University School of Public Health, 1025 E. 7th Street, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Indiana University School of Public Health, Bloomington, IN, USA.
J Community Health. 2020 Aug;45(4):862-870. doi: 10.1007/s10900-020-00803-1.
To identify significant predictors of the adoption of more than one tick-exposure and tick-borne disease risk reduction behavior among a cross-section of Indiana residents. Study participants were recruited through quota sampling, before completing an online self-administered questionnaire in Qualtrics. The most adopted tick exposure risk reduction behavior (TERRB) (was 'Walking on established trails and avoiding contact with adjacent vegetation' (83%, n = 2418). This was followed by 'Conducting a thorough check of clothing and the body soon after returning from the outdoors' (81%, n = 2373). The two least adopted TERRBs were,' Treating outdoor clothing with special insect repellent (e.g. Permethrin)' (48%, n = 1409) and 'Wearing appropriate clothing' ('Tucking shirt into pants, and the pants into socks when outdoors') respectively (52%, n = 1524). Study participants who engaged in residential tick control practices (i.e. 'three-foot wide barrier of wood chips/gravel between lawn and woodland', 'yard pesticide application', 'shrub & tree-branch trimming', 'yard fencing', 'fixed time lawn mowing', and 'leaf litter removal') were significantly more likely to adopt nearly all the assessed TERRBs. Higher scores on TERRB efficacy index were associated with engaging in multiple TERRBs. Higher degree of worry about safety/health because of ticks was also associated with adoption of multiple TERRBs. In conclusion, increased risk perceptions, among Indiana residents is significantly associated with adoption of multiple TERRBs. Identifying the predictors of the adoption of more than one TERRB is vital for the prevention of tick-borne diseases.
确定印第安纳州居民样本中采取多种蜱虫暴露及蜱传疾病风险降低行为的显著预测因素。研究参与者通过配额抽样招募，然后在Qualtrics上完成一份在线自填问卷。最常采取的蜱虫暴露风险降低行为（TERRB）是“走在既定小径上并避免接触相邻植被”（83%，n = 2418）。其次是“从户外返回后立即对衣物和身体进行彻底检查”（81%，n = 2373）。两种最少采取的TERRB分别是“用特殊驱虫剂（如氯菊酯）处理户外衣物”（48%，n = 1409）和“穿着合适的衣物”（“在户外时将衬衫塞进裤子，裤子塞进袜子”）（52%，n = 1524）。采取住宅蜱虫控制措施（即“在草坪和林地之间设置三英尺宽的木屑/砾石屏障”、“在院子里施用杀虫剂”、“修剪灌木和树枝”、“院子围栏”、“固定时间修剪草坪”以及“清除落叶”）的研究参与者更有可能采取几乎所有评估的TERRB。TERRB功效指数得分较高与采取多种TERRB相关。因蜱虫而对安全/健康的担忧程度较高也与采取多种TERRB相关。总之，印第安纳州居民中风险认知的增加与采取多种TERRB显著相关。确定采取不止一种TERRB的预测因素对于预防蜱传疾病至关重要。
