scholarly journals Knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding rabies and its control among dog owners in Kigali city, Rwanda

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pie Ntampaka ◽  
Philip Njeru Nyaga ◽  
James Kinuthia Gathumbi ◽  
Michael Tukei ◽  
François Niragire

Background: Rabies is a zoonotic viral disease that can occur in all warm-blooded mammals, including man [1]. Vaccinating dogs can protect people from contracting rabies [2]. Annual deaths due to rabies was estimated to 61000 worldwide [1], and Africa represented 35.2% of the deaths [3]. In Rwanda, rabies is a public health threat to the public [4], but the country does not have information on the disease [5]. Methodology: The present study aimed to assess knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of rabies and its control among dog owners in Kigali city, Rwanda. We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a structured questionnaire among 137 dog owners randomly selected within each of the selected 9 study sites. A series of chi-square tests of association and binary logistic regression were used to determine the important factors associated with the response variables. Results: The results showed that 99.5% of respondents could mention at least a host susceptible to rabies. Only 22.4 % and 21.3 % knew about canine and human rabies, respectively. Nearly 73.6% knew that human rabies can be transmitted through dog-bites and 99% could identify at least a clinical sign of canine rabies. Nealy 81.8% thought that regularly vaccinating dogs could prevent people from contracting dog-transmitted rabies. Only 43.1% and 26.3% were aware that clinical human and canine rabies are always deadly, respectively. Respondents who would observe a dog for some time, once it bites a man or an animal, represented 69%. Only 20.4% were familiar with cleaning dog-bites wounds with water and soap, before attending health care facilities. Few respondents owning dogs (20.6%) knew that puppies could receive rabies vaccination before the age of three months. Of respondents who owned vaccinated dogs, 78% were happy about the cost of rabies vaccination of dogs (Rwandan Francs 0-30,000). Nearly 57.9% had their dogs vaccinated at home by veterinarians. Eighty-two (82%) percent of respondents received rabies information from neighbours, the media and public meetings. Logistic regression analyses indicated that none of respondents’sex, education level, and duration of dog ownership was statistically associated with their knowledge of rabies. The respondents who had kept dogs for 5-10 years were less likely to have as sufficient knowledge as those who had kept dogs for more than ten years (AOR=0.96). Male respondents were more likely to adopt a positive attitude (AOR=1.47) and have appropriate practice (AOR=1.40) towards rabies. The respondents who had completed at least primary education, were more likely to have appropriate practice of rabies (AOR=1.41). Conclusions: This study identified gaps in the dog owners’ rabies knowledge of transmission, treatment and control. In addition, none of respondents’sex, educational level, and dog ownership length was statistically associated with their rabies knowledge. Overall, this study indicated that all categories of dog owners in Kigali city did not have good levels of rabies knowledge. Rabies interventions including awareness component in the studied population should be homogeneously improved.

2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (8) ◽  
pp. 1624-1634 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. FENELON ◽  
P. DELY ◽  
M. A. KATZ ◽  
N. D. SCHAAD ◽  
A. DISMER ◽  
...  

SUMMARYHaiti has the highest human rabies burden in the Western Hemisphere. There is no published literature describing the public's perceptions of rabies in Haiti, information that is critical to developing effective interventions and government policies. We conducted a knowledge, attitudes and practices survey of 550 community members and 116 health professionals in Pétionville, Haiti in 2013 to understand the perception of rabies in these populations. The majority of respondents (85%) knew that dogs were the primary reservoir for rabies, yet only 1% were aware that bats and mongooses could transmit rabies. Animal bites were recognized as a mechanism of rabies transmission by 77% of the population and 76% were aware that the disease could be prevented by vaccination. Of 172 persons reporting a bite, only 37% sought medical treatment. The annual bite incidence rate in respondents was 0·9%. Only 31% of bite victims reported that they started the rabies vaccination series. Only 38% of respondents reported that their dog had been vaccinated against rabies. The majority of medical professionals recognized that dogs were the main reservoir for rabies (98%), but only 28% reported bats and 14% reported mongooses as posing a risk for rabies infection. Bites were reported as a mechanism of rabies transmission by 73% of respondents; exposure to saliva was reported by 20%. Thirty-four percent of medical professionals reported they would wash a bite wound with soap and water and 2·8% specifically mentioned rabies vaccination as a component of post-bite treatment. The majority of healthcare professionals recommended some form of rabies assessment for biting animals; 68·9% recommended a 14-day observation period, 60·4% recommended a veterinary consultation, and 13·2% recommended checking the vaccination status of the animal. Fewer than 15% of healthcare professionals had ever received training on rabies prevention and 77% did not know where to go to procure rabies vaccine for bite victims. Both study populations had a high level of knowledge about the primary reservoir for rabies and the mode of transmission. However, there is a need to improve the level of knowledge regarding the importance of seeking medical care for dog bites and additional training on rabies prevention for healthcare professionals. Distribution channels for rabies vaccines should be evaluated, as the majority of healthcare providers did not know where rabies vaccines could be obtained. Canine rabies vaccination is the primary intervention for rabies control programmes, yet most owned dogs in this population were not vaccinated.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sith Premashthira ◽  
Sarin Suwanpakdee ◽  
Weerapong Thanapongtharm ◽  
Onpawee Sagarasaeranee ◽  
Weerakorn Thichumpa ◽  
...  

Rabies is a deadly zoonotic disease responsible for almost 60,000 deaths each year, especially in Africa and Asia including Thailand. Dogs are the major reservoirs for rabies virus in these settings. This study thus used the concept of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) to identify socioeconomic factors that contribute to the differences in the canine rabies occurrences in high and low-risk areas which were classified by a Generalized Additive Model (GAM). Multistage sampling was then applied to designate the study locations and a KAP-based questionnaire was used to retrieve data and relevant perspectives from the respondents. Based on the responses from 476 participants living across four regions of Thailand, we found that the knowledge of the participants was positively correlated with their behaviors but negatively associated with the attitudes. Participants who are male, younger, educated at the level of middle to high school, or raising more dogs are likely to have negative attitudes but good knowledge on rabies prevention and control whereas farmers with lower income had better attitudes regardless of their knowledge. We found that people in a lower socioeconomic status with a lack of knowledge are not willing to pay at a higher vaccine price. Public education is a key to change dog owners' behaviors. Related authorities should constantly educate people on how to prevent and control rabies in their communities. Our findings should be applicable to other countries with similar socioeconomic statuses.


2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rona P. Bernales ◽  
Ilene S. Basitan

This study was conducted in selected provinces of Bicol Region from April 2015 to May 2015 to describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of dog owners regarding rabies and dog bites. A purposive sampling was used in selecting the respondents of the study. Frequencies were tabulated for all variables. Of the 1,200 respondents, 2,193 dogs were recorded making a 2:1 ratio of dogs to householders in this particular study. Among these dogs 58% were vaccinated against rabies. The majority of the ones taking care of the dogs were female (57.3%) but the primary owner (62.9%) was the head of the family. Only 34.7% of the respondents knew that it is their duty to get their pets vaccinated against rabies. Around one-fourth (20.7%) admitted that someone in their household had been bitten by a dog but most respondents (62.5%) did nothing to the dog. The majority (57.7%) of the bite victims were youths (1-14 years old) and almost all (82.7%) of the wound bites were washed with soap and water. Television (44.9%) was the primary source of knowledge about rabies. The majority of participants (67.3%) said that humans are the main end-hosts that can be infected with rabies. Salivation or drooling (42.7%) and craziness (34.2%) were the main signs cited as behaviour of rabid dogs while craziness (40.2%) and hydrophobia or fear of water (25.4%) were cited for rabid humans. Most (33.9%) do not know the source of rabies but the majority (61.8%) believe that vaccination is the main preventive measure against rabies. The majority of participants (63%) reported that the local ordinances regarding rabies in their locality is about the Local Anti-Rabies Act and almost all (93.2%) admitted that vaccination is the most common anti-rabies program of the government.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-12
Author(s):  
Bolajoko Muhammad-Bashir ◽  
Yakubu Joel Atuman

Despite availability of safer and cost-effective treatments and vaccines, rabies is still considered among the most fatal viral zoonotic disease worldwide. The epidemiology of rabies is directly associated with the ecology of the reservoirs which needs better understanding to underpin appropriate control measures. There are only few reported attempts made towards understanding the ecology of dog and rabies cases in Nigeria. Although dogs are tolerated and kept in Bauchi State, the risk factors associated with dog ownership in the state, remain to be studied. This study is aimed at determining the risk factors associated with dog ownership in Bauchi state and to evaluate the degree with which the presence or absence of the identified factors can increase or decrease risk of rabies cases in the state. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted amongst dog owners across the state. Basic descriptive analyses were carried out in Microsoft Excel 2016 and IBM SPSS 21 was used to determine the relative risk (RR) of rabies occurrence in households across the state when exposed to each of the identified risk factors where P-value was set at 0.05. A total of 80 questionnaires were completed and received from the respondents. The calculated RR, revealed that the practice of extensive system of management increases the risk of canine rabies amongst dogs of the state by 80% and knowledge of dog owners about canine rabies reduces the risk of canine rabies by 27%. This study confirmed that dogs are owned and tolerated but poorly managed under extensive management system in Bauchi state with increasing risks of rabies spread due to low vaccination coverage and lack of practical application of knowledge on the dangers of rabies amongst the populace. The public health implication of this situation and the need for concerted efforts for sustainable control of rabies in the state is discussed


2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baba Awuni ◽  
Elvis Tarkang ◽  
Emmanuel Manu ◽  
Hubert Amu ◽  
Martin Amogre Ayanore ◽  
...  

Background: Human rabies, often contracted through dog bites, is a serious but neglected public health problem in the tropics, including Ghana. Due to its high fatality rate, adequate knowledge and vaccination of domestic dogs against the disease are very crucial in reducing its burden. We examined dog owners’ knowledge level on rabies and factors that influenced anti-rabies vaccination of dogs in the Upper East Region of Ghana. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 260 randomly sampled dog owners in six communities from six Districts using a multistage sampling technique, in the Upper East Region of Ghana. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. Descriptive and inferential analyses were done using STATA 14.1. Results: While knowledge about rabies was 199 (76.5%), that about anti-rabies vaccination was 137 (52.7%). District of residence (χ2 = 112.59, p < 0.001), sex (χ2 = 6.14, p = 0.013), education (χ2 = 20.45, p < 0.001) as well as occupation (χ2 = 11.97, p = 0.007) were significantly associated with rabies knowledge. District of residence (χ2 = 57.61, p < 0.001), Educational level (χ2 = 15.37, p = 0.004), occupation (χ2 = 11.66, p = 0.009), religion (χ2 = 8.25, p = 0.016) and knowledge on rabies (χ2 = 42.13, p < 0.001) were also statistically associated with dog vaccination against rabies. Dog owners with good knowledge on rabies for instance, were more likely to vaccinate their dogs against rabies compared to those with poor knowledge [AOR = 1.99 (95% CI: 0.68, 5.86), p = 0.210]. Dog owners with tertiary level of education were also 76.31 times more likely (95% CI: 6.20, 938.49, p = 0.001) to have good knowledge about rabies compared to those with no formal education. Conclusions: Dog owners in the Upper East Region of Ghana had good knowledge about rabies. This, however, did not translate into correspondingly high levels of dog vaccination against the disease. Rabies awareness and vaccination campaigns should, therefore, be intensified in the region, especially among the least educated and female dog owners.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 1523-1531
Author(s):  
Amanda Gabriela De Carvalho ◽  
João Gabriel Guimarães Luz ◽  
Luane Dantas Rodrigues ◽  
João Victor Leite Dias ◽  
Cor Jesus Fernandes Fontes

Introduction: This cross-sectional study evaluated the impact of socioeconomic status on the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) concerning zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (VL) among dog owners from the municipality of Rondonópolis—a highly endemic area for the disease in Central-Western Brazil. Methodology: Data were collected between 2016 and 2017 during a household survey. A probabilistic sample of 404 dog owners were interviewed assessing sociodemographic characteristics, previous occurrence of VL cases, and KAP about human VL, vector, and canine VL. Responses regarding KAP were compared among social classes, which are indicators of socioeconomic status. Correct/appropriate answers were scored, and a multivariate Poisson regression analysis evaluated the impact of social class on scoring. Results: The overall KAP regarding VL was limited. Dog owners from higher social classes differed from those of the lower classes regarding the recognition of abdominal distension (p = 0.026) and skin lesions (p < 0.001) as clinical manifestations of human and canine VL, respectively, knowledge of VL transmission (p = 0.020), use of topical repellents (p < 0.001), use of insecticide-impregnated collars (p = 0.003), and previous attempts of treatment for canine VL (p = 0.005). Higher scores were associated with the upper social classes (IRR = 1.18; CI = 1.08-1.29) adjusted by the age (IRR = 1.13; CI = 1.04-1.24) and the previous occurrence of human (IRR = 1.21; CI = 1.07-1.36) and canine (IRR = 1.25; CI = 1.14-1.36) VL in the household/neighbourhood of the respondents. Conclusions: Improved KAP concerning VL was associated with better socioeconomic status of dog owners.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. e0210044 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Ntampaka ◽  
P. N. Nyaga ◽  
F. Niragire ◽  
J. K. Gathumbi ◽  
M. Tukei

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. e0009222
Author(s):  
Chiho Kaneko ◽  
Ryosuke Omori ◽  
Michihito Sasaki ◽  
Chikako Kataoka-Nakamura ◽  
Edgar Simulundu ◽  
...  

Background An estimated 75% or more of the human rabies cases in Africa occur in rural settings, which underscores the importance of rabies control in these areas. Understanding dog demographics can help design strategies for rabies control and plan and conduct canine mass vaccination campaigns effectively in African countries. Methodology/Principal findings A cross-sectional survey was conducted to investigate domestic dog demographics in Kalambabakali, in the rural Mazabuka District of Zambia. The population of ownerless dogs and the total achievable vaccination coverage among the total dog population was estimated using the capture-recapture-based Bayesian model by conducting a canine mass vaccination campaign. This study revealed that 29% of the domestic dog population was under one year old, and 57.7% of those were under three months old and thus were not eligible for the canine rabies vaccination in Zambia. The population growth was estimated at 15% per annum based on the cross-sectional household survey. The population of ownerless dogs was estimated to be small, with an ownerless-to-owned-dog ratio of 0.01–0.06 in the target zones. The achieved overall vaccination coverage from the first mass vaccination was estimated 19.8–51.6%. This low coverage was principally attributed to the owners’ lack of information, unavailability, and dog-handling difficulties. The follow-up mass vaccination campaign achieved an overall coverage of 54.8–76.2%. Conclusions/Significance This paper indicates the potential for controlling canine rabies through mass vaccination in rural Zambia. Rabies education and responsible dog ownership are required to achieve high and sustainable vaccination coverage. Our findings also propose including puppies below three months old in the target population for rabies vaccination and emphasize that securing an annual enforcement of canine mass vaccination that reaches 70% coverage in the dog population is necessary to maintain protective herd immunity.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document