Analysis of Knowledge Level in Brazilian Students about Human Papillomavirus Infection and Development of Penile Cancer

Abstract

<br /> <strong><span style="font-size: small;">Introduction: </span></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">Human papillomavirus (HPV), belonging to the Papovavirida family, is the most prevalent sexually transmitted disease (STD) agent worldwide. In Brazil, it is estimated that there are 3-6 million people infected with HPV. </span></span><strong><span style="font-size: small;">Aim: </span></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge of young male students about penis cancer related to HPV infection. </span></span><strong><span style="font-size: small;">Methods: </span></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">This exploratory and quantitative study was conducted to analyze answers of 242 male students attending a private college located in Uberaba city, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, during 2015. </span></span><strong><span style="font-size: small;">Results: </span></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">Most </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">of the 242 participants (88.8%) affirmed having started sexual life very early, the majority (79.3%) were currently married and 69.8% had a single sexual partner. Regardless of their knowledge about HPV virus and its relationship </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">with penis cancer, our data showed a general lack of awareness of the participants. </span></span><strong><span style="font-size: small;">Conclusion: </span></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman,Times New Roman; font-size: small;">Our results suggest that despite efforts to propagate information about HPV infection and its relation to penis cancer, the level of knowledge of students is low. Because of that, it is important to improve the information spread by media, emphasizing prevention and treatment of HPV infection in men. </span></span>