Riccò Matteo, Peruzzi Simona, Balzarini Federica
Servizio di Prevenzione e Sicurezza Negli Ambienti di Lavoro (SPSAL), AUSL-IRCCS di Reggio Emilia, Via Amendola n.2, I-42122 Reggio Emilia, RE, Italy.
Laboratorio Analisi Chimico Cliniche e Microbiologiche, Ospedale Civile di Guastalla, AUSL-IRCCS di Reggio Emilia, I-42016 Guastalla, RE, Italy.
Trop Med Infect Dis. 2021 Jun 29;6(3):116. doi: 10.3390/tropicalmed6030116.
During the last decade, cases of West Nile Virus (WNV) have occurred in the Emilia Romagna Region (ERR). Even though the notification rates remain relatively low, ranging from 0.06 to 1.83 cases/100,000 inhabitants, the persistent pathogen's circulation in settings characterized by favorable environmental characteristics suggests that WNV is becoming endemic to the Po River Valley. This study assesses knowledge, attitudes, and preventive practices toward WNV prevention among residents from 10 high-risk municipalities from the provinces of Parma and Reggio Emilia (total population: 82,317 inhabitants, census 2020). A web-based survey, based on the health belief model, was performed during the month of January 2021, with a convenience sampling of 469 participants from a series of closed discussion groups on social media (i.e., 2.1% of the potential responders). A total of 243 participants knew the meaning of WNV: Of them, 61.3% were aware of previous WNV infections in ERR, 76.5% acknowledged WNV infection as a severe one, but only 31.3% expressed any worry about WNV. Our results irregularly report preventive practices, either collective (e.g., draining standing water from items and the environment, 50.7%; spraying pesticides around the home, 33.0%) or individual (e.g., use of skin repellants when going outdoors, 42.6%). In a multivariate analysis, performed through binary logistic regression, participants reporting any worry towards WNV were more likely to characterize WNV as a severe disease (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 20.288, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 5.083-80.972). On the contrary, respondents supporting community mosquito control programs were more likely among people working with animals/livestock (aOR = 13.948, 95%CI = 2.793-69.653), and supporting tax exemptions for mosquito control programs (aOR = 4.069, 95%CI 2.098-7.893). In conclusion, our results suggest that future interventions promoting WNV prevention among residents in ERR should focus on perceptions of vulnerability to WNV, emphasizing the benefits of personal protective behaviors.
在过去十年中，艾米利亚-罗马涅大区（ERR）出现了西尼罗河病毒（WNV）病例。尽管报告率仍然相对较低，每10万居民中为0.06至1.83例，但这种致病性持久的病毒在具有有利环境特征的地区持续传播，这表明WNV正在成为波河流域的地方病。本研究评估了帕尔马省和雷焦艾米利亚省10个高风险市镇居民对WNV预防的知识、态度和预防措施（总人口：82317人，2020年人口普查）。2021年1月进行了一项基于健康信念模型的网络调查，通过便利抽样从一系列社交媒体上的封闭讨论组中选取了469名参与者（即潜在受访者的2.1%）。共有243名参与者知道WNV的含义：其中，61.3%的人知晓ERR此前有WNV感染情况，76.5%的人承认WNV感染是一种严重感染，但只有31.3%的人对WNV表示担忧。我们的结果不定期报告了预防措施，包括集体措施（如排干物品和环境中的积水，50.7%；在房屋周围喷洒杀虫剂，33.0%）或个人措施（如外出时使用皮肤驱虫剂，42.6%）。在通过二元逻辑回归进行的多变量分析中，对WNV表示担忧的参与者更有可能将WNV描述为一种严重疾病（调整后的优势比[aOR]=20.288，95%置信区间[CI]=5.083 - 80.972）。相反，支持社区蚊虫控制项目的受访者在从事动物/牲畜工作的人群中更为常见（aOR = 13.948，95%CI = 2.793 - 69.653），以及支持蚊虫控制项目税收减免的人群中也更为常见（aOR = 4.069，95%CI 2.098 - 7.893）。总之，我们的结果表明，未来在ERR居民中促进WNV预防的干预措施应侧重于对WNV易感性的认知，强调个人防护行为带来的益处。
