Abstract
BACKGROUND: There is little information available regarding knowledge and attitudes towards the human papillomavirus (HPV) and its vaccines among the students in mainland India. Furthermore, there has not been much information accessible on how to increase their understanding of and readiness to receive HPV and associated vaccines, which could be crucial for the future success of vaccination campaigns. This study aims to assess the knowledge and attitude of middle- and high-school students towards HPV infection, HPV vaccine and cervical cancer prevention. METHOD: The present study was an observational study conducted from July 2023 to December 2023 in the Gwalior District of Northern India among the 490 students aged 11-16 years. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information from the students. The collected data was entered into an Microsoft Excel spreadsheet for easy calculation. Frequency and percentage were calculated and significance in proportion was tested using the chi-square test P value was judged at a 5% level of significance. RESULTS: The average age of the student was 13.67 ± 1.95 years range between 11 years and 16 years with a 0.52:1 sex ratio. Out of the 490 enrolled participants, 41.0% of subjects had previously heard about cervical cancer. About 64.7% of students heard it from the mass media. A total of 181 (36.9%) knew that cervical cancer was caused by HPV infection. Only 168 (34.3%) participants knew the fact that men were also infected by HPV infection. Only 12.4% knew that a healthy-looking person could have an HPV infection. Only 11.6% had shown their willingness for the HPV vaccination. There was a significant difference observed among the males and females regarding knowledge questions. Males (54.76%) heard more about cervical cancer than females (33.85%). Males had more knowledge (60.1%) regarding cervical cancer caused by HPV infection as compared with females (24.8%). CONCLUSION: Students' awareness of HPV and the HPV vaccine was low. Training that focusses on HPV information in addition to sex education is needed to promote HPV vaccine coverage.