PDF(Pubmed)
Abstract：
Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL), a neglected tropical disease (NTD), is a major public health problem in Yemen with widespread distribution in rural areas. Evaluating the knowledge and understanding of people\'s beliefs towards the disease is essential to the implementation of effective control measures. This study aims to assess the knowledge, attitudes, practices (KAP) and treatment-seeking behaviour concerning CL among rural populations in the western highlands of Yemen. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 289 household heads in four rural areas of the Utmah District. Data were collected using a pre-tested questionnaire. All the participants had heard about the disease; however, only 9.3% attributed it to sandflies. Nearly half (48.1%) of the participants could not mention any preventive measures for CL, and nearly two-thirds (65.4%) could not do so for sandflies. The overall \'good\' knowledge about CL was found to be 51.2%, and it was 33.9% for sandflies. The participants\' attitude and prevention practices towards CL were not satisfactory, as only 38.1% and 16.3% had a positive attitude and good CL-related prevention practices, respectively. Moreover, 45.7% believed CL to be a stigmatising disease, and 50% had used traditional remedies to treat suspected CL lesions. Multivariate analyses showed that age, sex, presence of CL-confirmed cases in the same household, residency, occupation and monthly household income were the significant predictors associated with KAP concerning CL among the participants. The findings support an urgent need for integrated health education and community mobilisation interventions to improve awareness of these vulnerable populations about this devastating disease.
摘要：
皮肤利什曼病（CL），被忽视的热带病(NTD)，是也门的主要公共卫生问题，在农村地区分布广泛。评估人们对该疾病的认识和认识对实施有效的控制措施至关重要。这项研究旨在评估知识，态度，也门西部高地农村人口中关于CL的做法(KAP)和寻求治疗的行为。对Utmah区四个农村地区的289名户主进行了基于社区的横断面研究。使用预测试问卷收集数据。所有参与者都听说过这种疾病；然而，只有9.3％将其归因于沙蝇。近一半(48.1%)的参与者没有提及CL的任何预防措施,近三分之二(65.4%)的沙蝇不能这样做。关于CL的总体“良好”知识为51.2%，沙蝇的比例为33.9%。参与者对CL的态度和预防措施并不令人满意，因为只有38.1%和16.3%的人有积极的态度和良好的CL相关预防措施，分别。此外，45.7%的人认为CL是一种污名化疾病，50%曾使用传统疗法治疗疑似CL病变.多变量分析表明，年龄，性别,在同一家庭中存在CL确诊病例，residence,在参与者中,职业和家庭月收入是与CL相关的KAP相关的重要预测因子.研究结果支持迫切需要综合健康教育和社区动员干预措施，以提高这些弱势群体对这种毁灭性疾病的认识。
