PLoS ONE (Jan 2020)

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and the quadrivalent HPV Vaccine among Brazilian adolescents and parents: Factors associated with and divergences in knowledge and acceptance.

  • Jéssica Menezes Gomes,
  • Beatriz Machado Silva,
  • Edige Felipe de Sousa Santos,
  • Patricia Jane Kelly,
  • Annielson de Souza Costa,
  • Albertina Duarte Takiuti,
  • Luiz Carlos de Abreu,
  • José Maria Soares Júnior,
  • Edmund Chada Baracat,
  • Isabel Cristina Esposito Sorpreso

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0241674
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 15, no. 11
p. e0241674

Abstract

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BackgroundLow national immunization coverage (44.64%) requires strengthening the vaccination campaign to improve knowledge about HPV and its vaccine among adolescents and parents/guardians. Our aim is to evaluate factors related to knowledge about HPV, its vaccine, acceptability and divergences among Brazilian adolescents and parents/guardians.MethodsA cross-sectional study was performed at a health unit of Sao Paulo University, Brazil, from 2015 to 2016. The convenience sample comprised 1047 individuals, including 74% (n = 776) adolescents and 26% (n = 271) parents/guardians, who answered a survey (knowledge about HPV, its vaccine, barriers and acceptability).ResultsThe main source of information for adolescents was school (39%, n = 298); for parents/guardians, it was health professionals (55%, n = 153). Parents/guardians were 2.48 times more likely than adolescents to know that HPV caused changes in the Pap smear test [RR 2.48, 95% CI 2.03-3.01 (p ConclusionFemale adolescents and parents/guardians with a higher level of education are factors related to suitable knowledge about HPV and its vaccine among Brazilian respondents. There were differences between parents/guardians and adolescents in HPV awareness, clinical implications, vaccine knowledge and vaccine acceptance.