Cruz-Valdez A, Castaneda M, Tovar-Guzman V, Rivera-Rivera L, Quiterio-Trenado M, Allen B; International Conference on AIDS.
Int Conf AIDS. 1998; 12: 119 (abstract no. 13172).
Ministry of Health of Durango State, Mexico.
OBJECTIVES: To explore the levels of knowledge that Mexican adolescents have about modes of HIV transmission and about how to prevent this transmission. DESIGN: Cross-sectional knowledge, attitudes and practices study. METHODS: This study was carried out among students of junior high and high schools in the central Mexican state of Morelos, which includes rural, semi-rural and urban areas. A multi-staged, random sample was taken in the following manner: first the districts were selected, next the schools and finally the groups of students. The unit of analysis was the individual student. Sample size: 633 adolescents, 13-17 years. A previously pilot tested questionnaire collected information about knowledge, attitudes and practices related to HIV/AIDS and this data was then analyzed with logistic regression. RESULTS: The most important finding of this study is that the adolescents studied have good knowledge of how HIV is transmitted (76% of them, n = 487), few know about how to prevent transmission (15% n = 93). Girls were 1.6 times less likely to know about modes of transmission than boys. Having received information at school produced 2.6 times less knowledge about transmission modes. CONCLUSION: More and above all better preventive education is needed for Mexican adolescents, especially since information given at school seems to be counter-productive, perhaps because it is presented in a confusing manner.
Publication Types:
Keywords:
- Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
- Adolescent
- Female
- HIV Infections
- HIV Seropositivity
- Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
- Hispanic Americans
- Humans
- Knowledge
- Male
- Questionnaires
- Rural Population
- Schools
- Students
- education
- methods
- therapy
- transmission
Other ID:
UI: 102227559
From Meeting Abstracts