Hepatitis B Awareness and Knowledge in Asian Communities in British Columbia

Abstract

Background. Our study examined hepatitis B virus (HBV) awareness and knowledge in Asian communities in British Columbia (BC). Methods. A statistical random sample representation of Chinese, Korean, Filipino, South Asian, and Southeast Asian populations in Greater Vancouver was surveyed by telephone. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of HBV knowledge. Results. General awareness of HBV was reported in 78.8% (798/1013). HBV awareness was the highest in Chinese (89%) and Filipino (88%) populations and the lowest in the South Asian (56%) population. “Reasonable” knowledge of HBV was elicited in 76.8% (778/1013). Higher HBV knowledge was associated with younger age (p = 0.014), higher education (p < 0.0001), Chinese ethnicity (p < 0.0001), and use of media (p = 0.01) and Internet (p = 0.024) for health information. Compared to the Chinese (OR = 1.0) population, “reasonable” knowledge of HBV was lower in Korean (OR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.1–0.5), Filipino (OR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.2–0.6), South Asian (OR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.2–0.4), and Southeast Asian (OR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.1–0.6) populations. 54.8% (555/1013) felt that HBV education was inadequate and 80.1% (811/1013) preferred HBV education in their native languages. Conclusion. Compared to the Chinese population, other Asian communities in BC have lower HBV awareness and knowledge. Public education should target older and less educated and Korean, Filipino, South Asian, and Southeast Asian populations in their native languages via media and Internet.

Awareness, knowledge, and practice for hepatitis B infection in Southeast Asia: a cross-sectional study

“…Higher education was also a significant predictor of higher knowledge score among Asians in North America, as studied by Cheng et al [15] and Yau et al [16]. The latter group also found, as we did, that younger age was positively associated with better HBV knowledge [16]. These findings suggest that publichealth agencies would do well to address the knowledge gap among those with a lower level of education, and the elderly.…”

“…Higher education was positively associated with good knowledge and practice scores in our study population. Higher education was also a significant predictor of higher knowledge score among Asians in North America, as studied by Cheng et al [15] and Yau et al [16]. The latter group also found, as we did, that younger age was positively associated with better HBV knowledge [16].…”

“…Members of the non-healthcare personnel had good scores when they learned about HBV from health promotions, medical consultations, or the internet. In an Asian community in British Columbia, internet use was a positive predictor for better knowledge about HBV infection [16]. However, even though 88% of participants in that study were bilingual, 80% said they prefer HBV information in their native languages.…”

“…Overall, the healthcare personnel were significantly more aware of HBV infection than the non-healthcare personnel (85.6% vs. 54%, P < 0.001). The median knowledge score of the healthcare personnel was 15 (IQR [13][14][15][16], and that of the non-healthcare personnel 11 . The percentage of participants with a good score was significantly higher among the healthcare personnel than the non-healthcare personnel (85.9% vs.45.5%, P < 0.001) ( Figure 2).…”

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice on Hepatitis B: A Survey among the Internet Users in Taif, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

“…Hislop, et al [6] documented low level of knowledge about the disease and especially routes of HBV transmission. Younger age, higher level of education and use of the internet and the media for health information about the disease were found to be significant predictors of higher knowledge about HBV [7]. The public ignores or unaware about the screening for hepatitis B and vaccination against the infection [8].…”