Knowledge and Attitude toward Human Papillomavirus Infection and Vaccination among Thai Women: A Nationwide Social Media Survey

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed first to assess Thai women’s knowledge and attitude toward Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and vaccination and second to find out factors associated with knowledge in this regard. METHODS: The survey announcement was advertised via Facebook from 17 May 2019 to 14 June 2019 to recruit women aged 18-26 years living in Thailand. A score below 5 out of total score of 10 on the survey was considered as a poor level of knowledge. Multivariate analysis was applied to identify factors associated with HPV infection and vaccination knowledge. RESULTS: A total of 1,175 participants were recruited. The participants’ median age was 22 years. Approximately, 46% of the participants had poor level of knowledge regarding HPV infection and vaccination. Factors associated with poor knowledge included low educational level (adjusted OR, 1.35; 95% CI 1.04-1.77), low family income (adjusted OR, 2.14; 95% CI 1.65-2.78), being Christian (adjusted OR, 4.04; 95% CI 1.22-13.40), being engaged in sexual intercourse (adjusted OR, 0.75; 95%CI 0.58-0.97), and being unvaccinated against HPV infection (adjusted OR, 5.74; 95% CI 3.07-10.74). CONCLUSION: Nearly half of the Thai women who participated in the survey had poor level of knowledge regarding HPV infection and vaccination, indicating a need for more effective health education intervention. Factors associated with knowledge included socioeconomic status and sexual behavior.