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Knowledge and Perception Towards Zika Outbreak In A Dental Institute

Manavpreet Singh, Karanprakash Singh, Mahijeet Singh Puri, Chitra Anandani, Harinder Pal Singh and Anjali Sharma

Objective: The objective of the study is to evaluate the level of knowledge and perception towards Zika virus (ZIKA) outbreak in a dental institute as this vector borne virus has become a major public health concern worldwide. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 177 persons including interns, Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) and Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) faculty. A wide variety of questions on the study topic including, basic knowledge and other characteristic features of ZIKA virus and its prevention and treatment modalities. Student’s t test and One way ANOVA were used to find the significance at p<0.05.
Results: Overall 61.7% had correct views about ZIKA outbreak. The findings showed that 90% participants possessed knowledge about the viral origin of the condition. It was further revealed that almost 88% practitioners were aware about the mosquito bite to be the main cause of the spread of ZIKA infection. Moreover, only 29% correctly responded about the incubation period of ZIKA virus. It was also noticed that female participants had greater knowledge regarding ZIKA. The results showed significant differences in the mean values according to the level of education.
Conclusion: It was revealed that all the participants had adequate knowledge on the topic of ZIKA and the scores almost increased with proceeding age and education.