Stan wiedzy na temat wirusowego zapalenia wątroby typu B i C wśród młodzieży ponadgimnazjalnej
Hepatitis B and C knowledge among secondary school students

Summary/Abstract: Introduction: HBV and HCV are among the most common causes of viral hepatitis. Chronic forms of infection may lead to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, and therefore death. From the literature it shows that the young generation does not have the right amount of knowledge on the subject, and lack of awareness of infection with HBV and HCV creates conditions for uncontrolled transmission of these viruses. The purpose of this study was to assess hepatitis B and C knowledge among secondary school students’. Material and methods: The study was conducted among the students enrolled in a upper secondary schools (N=250). In order to gather information a personal questionnaire was used. Statistical analysis was performed with Mann-Whitney U test, the Kruskal-Wallistest, Pearson correlation coefficient. P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: The largest percentage of respondents (54%) was characterized by a low level of knowledge about hepatitis B and C. Students are not aware that hepatitis is an infectious disease and viruses, HBV and HCV can survive outside the human organism. They do not know whether they were vaccinated against hepatitis B and mistakenly believe that there is a vaccine against HCV. Only 4% of the students showed a high level of knowledge on the subject. Indeed, more knowledgeable students are female (p=0.006) and rural residents (p=0.024). The main source of information is the Internet (55% of responses). Conclusions: General knowledge of secondary school students about hepatitis B and Cis low. Students’ knowledge is determined by the gender and place of residence, and its main source is the Internet.

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