Knowledge of Lassa Fever among Students of a College of Education: Call for Inclusion in Curriculum

Aims: To determine the level of knowledge of Lassa fever among students of a Federal College of Education.

Study Design: A descriptive, cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo State.

Methodology: Knowledge of Lassa fever was assessed using semi-structured, self-administered questionnaires. Respondents were classified into Biology students and others. Their knowledge of Lassa fever was assessed using a set of multiple-choice questions drawn from the fact sheet published by the Centre for Disease Control of Lassa fever. The respondents were then grouped into three classes: Below average (< 50%), good (50-74%), and excellent (75-100%) based on their scores. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS 17. Continuous variables were expressed as frequency and percentage. Discrete variables were expressed as mean ± standard deviation. Student test was used to compare mean value of sub-groups while chi-square test was used to determine the significance of observed differences for categorical variables. P value < 0.05 was considered significant.

Results: A total of 255 students participated in this study (M:F, 1:1.3). The mean score was 31.6±7.3%. Forty two percent were studying Biology and seven (2.7%) had good knowledge of the disease.

Sixty two percent knew the cause of Lassa fever while 12.5% knew its etymology and 92.6% recognized rats as its vector. Fever (38.8%) and bleeding into the skin (20.4%) were the symptoms of Lassa fever identified by most respondents while 14.9% were aware that less than 20% of infected people may die from Lassa fever. Forty two percent knew that it is treatable. There was no significant difference in the knowledge of Lassa fever between Biology students and others (p = 0.083).

Conclusion: Knowledge of Lassa fever is poor among our respondents. For a successful teacher-centered enlightenment campaign against Lassa fever, lectures on the disease should be included in the curriculum of Colleges of Education for all departments.