Awareness and knowledge of HIV/AIDS among senior secondary school students in Zaria, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Nigeria has one of the largest human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemics in the world and one of the highest rates of new infections in Sub-Saharan Africa. The younger age group has been identified as bearing half of the burden of HIV worldwide. This includes secondary-school children. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the awareness and Knowledge of senior secondary-school (SSS) students concerning HIV/AIDS. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted among SSS students in Zaria, Kaduna state, Nigeria. Respondents were selected using a multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using a pretested, semi-structured, self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to represent univariate level data, whereas chi-square and Fisher’s exact test where applicable were used to identify the relationship between knowledge of HIV and other categorical variables with a level of significance of P < .05. Results: The mean age (± SD) of respondents was 16.1 ± 1.1 years. All (100%) of the respondents were aware of HIV/AIDS. The majority of the respondents knew HIV/AIDS was caused by a virus (89%). Almost a quarter of the respondents (22.1%) believed that antibiotics can prevent HIV. The mean (±SD) knowledge score was 80.5 (± 15.8) out of a total of 100%. Overall, 62 (84.9%) of the respondents had good knowledge of HIV/AIDS. There was a statistically significant relationship between knowledge and tribe as well as the religion of the respondents (P = 0.008 and P = .016, respectively). No statistically significant relationship was found between knowledge and other sociodemographic factors (P > .05). Conclusion: HIV/AIDS awareness and knowledge were good among respondents though some misconceptions still existed. Respondent’s tribe was significantly associated with the level of knowledge of HIV/AIDS. The school authorities and all other concerned agencies should design campaigns targeted at correcting specific misconceptions and gaps in knowledge for the benefit of the students in the study area and the country at large.