Knowledge and attitude of hepatitis B infection among patients with the infection in the main liver clinic in The Gambia

INTRODUCTION: adequate knowledge on hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is important among patients with the infection as this impacts their health-seeking behavior. This study therefore assessed the knowledge and attitude among patients infected with HBV in The Gambia. METHODS: this cross-sectional study was conducted at the main liver clinic, Medical Research Council Gambia at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (MRCG@LSHTM). A questionnaire was administered on a one-on-one basis to assess the level of knowledge and attitude of people with chronic HBV. RESULTS: a total of 152 HBV patients were recruited into the study. Majority of the participants were male 136 (89.5%), within the 30-39 years age group. Sixty-four (42.1%) of the patients attained secondary education and 72 (47.4%) were working as civil servants. The mean knowledge score was 11.09/20 (standard deviation = 4.89). HBV patients having tertiary level education (p-value =0.001) or HBV diagnosis greater than 1 year (p-value =0.031) were more likely to have adequate knowledge of HBV infection. No significant associations were found between the socio-demographic and clinical characteristic variables and attitude. However, majority of the participants (56.6%) reported been worried about having HBV infection ever since being diagnosed. CONCLUSION: this study has highlighted the need for more patient health education especially for those with lower levels of education and newly diagnosed patients. It also further confirms the need for cultural and appropriate language consideration in providing education and information for HBV patients in The Gambia at the point of diagnosis.