Al Alawi Salma, Al Zaabi Omar, Heffernan Margaret E, Arulappan Judie, Al Hasani Noora, Al Baluchi Munira, Al Mamari Alia, Al Saadi Amani
Department of Adult Health and Critical Care, College of Nursing, Sultan Qaboos University, P.O. Box 66, Al Khoud, Postal Code 123, Muscat, Oman.
College of Business and Law, School of Management, RMIT University, Level 8, Bldg 80, Room 83, 445 Swanston Street, GPO Box 2476V, Melbourne 3001, Victoria, Australia.
Vaccine. 2023 Mar 24;41(13):2224-2233. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.02.063. Epub 2023 Feb 28.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the leading risk factor for the development of anogenital cancers. Most Arab countries lack both HPV education and national HPV vaccination programs. The objective of this study was to assess knowledge, attitudes, and acceptance toward HPV vaccination in men and women from Oman, a country in the Middle Eastern North Africa region.
This cross-sectional quantitative study used convenience sampling to recruit male and female participants, aged 18 years and above from all 11 governorates of Oman to complete a validated self-administered questionnaire online in the Arabic language. The questionnaire comprised five sections, with a total of 32 questions. The questionnaire, including Arabic and English versions, was content validated and piloted.
A total of 1403 participants, including 952 parents and 369 healthcare providers, completed the survey. The results showed a lack of knowledge regarding HPV infection and vaccines, including among healthcare providers. Less than a quarter of the participants had heard of HPV infection, with digital sources of information being the most common. Factors such as being a woman or a healthcare provider or completing higher levels of education were independently and significantly positively association with HPV awareness (p < 0.001). The majority of the participants lacked vaccine safety knowledge, had concerns about the vaccine's side effects, and sought reassurance of its protection against HPV infection (62%, 71.5%, and 84.6%, respectively). Nevertheless, nearly two-thirds of the participants agreed to take the HPV vaccine, with support for both boys and girls being vaccinated. There was almost universal agreement among the participants regarding the need for parental and adolescent HPV educational programs.
Omani women and men showed a high level of acceptance and favorable attitude toward HPV vaccination. The study findings support future efforts to implement school and public-level HPV education and a national HPV vaccination program in Oman.
人乳头瘤病毒（HPV）感染是肛门生殖器癌发生的主要危险因素。大多数阿拉伯国家既缺乏HPV教育，也没有国家HPV疫苗接种计划。本研究的目的是评估中东和北非地区阿曼的男性和女性对HPV疫苗接种的知识、态度和接受程度。
这项横断面定量研究采用便利抽样法，从阿曼所有11个省招募18岁及以上的男性和女性参与者，以阿拉伯语在线完成一份经过验证的自填式问卷。问卷包括五个部分，共32个问题。该问卷包括阿拉伯语和英语版本，经过内容验证和预试验。
共有1403名参与者完成了调查，其中包括952名家长和369名医疗保健提供者。结果显示，包括医疗保健提供者在内，对HPV感染和疫苗缺乏了解。不到四分之一的参与者听说过HPV感染，信息的数字来源是最常见的。女性、医疗保健提供者或完成高等教育等因素与HPV知晓率呈独立且显著的正相关（p<0.001）。大多数参与者缺乏疫苗安全知识，担心疫苗的副作用，并寻求其预防HPV感染的保证（分别为62%、71.5%和84.6%）。然而，近三分之二的参与者同意接种HPV疫苗，支持男孩和女孩都接种。参与者们几乎一致认为需要开展家长和青少年HPV教育项目。
阿曼的男性和女性对HPV疫苗接种表现出高度的接受度和积极态度。研究结果支持阿曼未来在学校和公共层面开展HPV教育以及实施国家HPV疫苗接种计划的努力。
