Andoy-Galvan Jo Ann, Patil Sapna Shridhar, Wong Yin How, Madhavan Priya, Wee Lei Hum, Chong Pei Pei, Looi Chung Yeng, Shaik Imam, Ponnupillai Anitha, Hasamnis Ameya Ashok, Bhargava Prabal, Mugilarasi Arasarethinam, Wong Eng Hwa, Yeong Chai Hong, Yau Weng Keong, Dinesh Mahalingam, Venugopalan Kulankara Balan, Muhamad Nor Asiah, Ma'amor Nur Hasnah, Rosli Izzah Athirah, Leman Fatin Norhasny
School of Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Taylor's University, Subang Jaya, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia.
Digital Health and Medical Advancement Impact Lab, Taylor's University, Subang Jaya, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia.
F1000Res. 2024 Nov 12;13:1355. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.157226.1. eCollection 2024.
Dengue fever poses a significant public health threat, particularly in tropical regions like Malaysia. The rising incidence of dengue outbreaks challenges healthcare systems and highlights the urgent need for effective preventive measures. Climate change, with rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns, is expected to worsen the dengue situation in the coming years.
. This is a cross-sectional study conducted among adult residents of low-cost housing apartments in an urban poor community in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia involving approximately 16,000 residents. A representative sample of 1,636 residents was calculated using the Krejcie and Morgan formula, and stratified random sampling was used to ensure proportional representation across the various floors of each PPR community apartment block. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire adapted from a validated Malay version. The questionnaire assessed respondents' knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) related to dengue prevention, categorising KAP scores as "Good" (≥80%) or "Poor" (<80%). Descriptive statistics summarized population characteristics and KAP scores, while logistic regression identified predictors of KAP levels, with significance set at p ≤ 0.05.
In this community, 76.7% of participants exhibited poor knowledge and 83.1% had a negative attitude towards dengue, despite 66.7% demonstrating good preventive practices. The PPR location significantly predicts dengue knowledge, attitudes, and preventive practices, with p-values of less than 0.001 for all domains. Marital status also predicts dengue knowledge (p = 0.007) and preventive practices (p = 0.023), while prior infection with dengue is a predictor of preventive practices (p = 0.047).
Despite the community's good dengue prevention practices, likely influenced by environmental expectations, there remains a critical need for education to sustain and strengthen these efforts, as climate change continues to worsen in the coming years. It is crucial to help residents grasp the relevance of these practices, so they can apply them more effectively as climate-driven risks intensify. Targeted interventions should de designed differently for each of the four PPR communities as their levels of knowledge, attitude and practices vary significantly, taking into account independent factors like marital status and prior dengue infection, which shape preventive behaviors.
登革热对公共卫生构成重大威胁，尤其是在马来西亚等热带地区。登革热疫情发病率不断上升，给医疗系统带来挑战，凸显了采取有效预防措施的迫切需求。预计随着气温上升和降雨模式变化，气候变化将在未来几年使登革热形势恶化。
这是一项在马来西亚吉隆坡一个城市贫困社区的低成本住房公寓成年居民中开展的横断面研究，涉及约16000名居民。使用Krejcie和Morgan公式计算出1636名居民的代表性样本，并采用分层随机抽样以确保每个公共住房（PPR）社区公寓楼各楼层的比例代表性。通过一份改编自经过验证的马来语版本的结构化问卷收集数据。该问卷评估了受访者与登革热预防相关的知识、态度和行为（KAP），将KAP得分分为“良好”（≥80%）或“较差”（<80%）。描述性统计总结了人群特征和KAP得分，而逻辑回归确定了KAP水平的预测因素，显著性设定为p≤0.05。
在这个社区中，76.7%的参与者知识水平较差，83.1%的人对登革热持消极态度，尽管66.7%的人展示了良好的预防行为。PPR社区位置显著预测登革热知识、态度和预防行为，所有领域的p值均小于0.001。婚姻状况也可预测登革热知识（p = 0.007）和预防行为（p = 0.023），而既往登革热感染是预防行为的一个预测因素（p = 0.047）。
尽管该社区有良好的登革热预防行为，这可能受到环境预期的影响，但随着未来几年气候变化持续恶化，仍然迫切需要开展教育以维持和加强这些努力。帮助居民理解这些行为的相关性至关重要，这样随着气候驱动的风险加剧，他们能够更有效地应用这些行为。由于四个PPR社区的知识、态度和行为水平差异显著，应针对每个社区设计不同的针对性干预措施，同时考虑到婚姻状况和既往登革热感染等影响预防行为的独立因素。
