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Hemoglobinopathy awareness among high school students in Antakya (Antioch), Turkey

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Abstract

Hemoglobinopathy is a major public health problem in Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey, where homozygote babies continue to be born. We wanted to present the knowledge of high school students and their attitudes on hemoglobinopathy in Antakya (center of Hatay).The study was performed on 11th grade students in 17 high schools and 486 students in the center at Antakya. We used a questionnaire and frequency tables and chi-square tests were used. Of the students who took part, 37.7% were previously informed about hemoglobinopathies, while 62.3% were not. There was no significant relationship between the school types and their being previously informed (p > 0.05). There was an index case for 28% of the students, and 25.4% of the students who did not have any diseased person around them were previously informed (p < 0.01). While the range of percentage of correct answers was between 17.5% (about treatment of the diseases) and 73.3% (about the carrier status), these percentages seemed to be higher for those who stated that they were previously informed (22.2% about treatment and 85.8% about the carrier status). As much as 83.7% of the students stated that they wanted to be educated about hemoglobinopathies in the school and 89.1% wanted to know if they were carriers. Our study suggests that there is an urgent need to revise the Hemoglobinopathy Control Programme especially with regard to the enlightenment of the students and public.

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Acknowledgment

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Conflict of interest statement

We have no competing interests.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health, Mustafa Kemal University Medicine Faculty, Antakya, Hatay, 31100, Turkey

    Nazan Savas, Ebru Turhan & Tacettin Inandi

  2. Department of Internal Medicine-Hematology, Mustafa Kemal University Medicine Faculty, Antakya, Hatay, 31100, Turkey

    Hasan Kaya

Authors
  1. Nazan Savas
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  2. Ebru Turhan
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  3. Tacettin Inandi
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  4. Hasan Kaya
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nazan Savas.

Appendix

Appendix

1.1 Questionnaire

  1. 1.

    Have you ever been informed about thalassemia and sickle cell anemia (SCA)?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  2. 2.

    If your answer was “yes”, where did you get the information about these diseases? (if more than one please encircle the most related choice)

    1. a.

      Internet

    2. b.

      Media

    3. c.

      School

    4. d.

      Friends

    5. e.

      Relatives

    6. f.

      Another………

  3. 3.

    Which system of the body can have diseases such as thalassemia and SCA according to you?

    1. a.

      Urinary system

    2. b.

      Cardiovascular system

    3. c.

      Nervous system

    4. d.

      Blood

    5. e.

      Digestive system

  4. 4.

    How do you think thalassemia and SCA are transmitted?

    1. a.

      By respiratory system

    2. b.

      By blood

    3. c.

      By digestive system

    4. d.

      By heredity

    5. e.

      By sexual contact

  5. 5.

    Do you think if it is possible to be a carrier of thalassemia or SCA?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  6. 6.

    Which gender do you think is more prone to catch these diseases?

    1. a.

      Male

    2. b.

      Female

    3. c.

      Male and female

  7. 7.

    In which locations in Turkey do you think these diseases occur most commonly?

    1. a.

      The Black Sea region

    2. b.

      The central Anatolia region

    3. c.

      The Mediterranean region

    4. d.

      The east Anatolia region

    5. e.

      The Marmara region

  8. 8.

    Do you think Thalassemia and SCA are preventable?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  9. 9.

    If your answer was “yes”, how are they prevented?

    • ………

    • ………

    • ………

  10. 10.

    What is an important risk factor for these diseases according to you?

    1. a.

      Smoke

    2. b.

      Incorrect nutrition

    3. c.

      Intermarriage

    4. d.

      Environmental and water pollution

    5. e.

      Electromagnetic field

  11. 11.

    Do you think that these diseases are treatable?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  12. 12.

    If you know of any of the methods to treat these diseases, please write these in a few sentences

    • ………

    • ………

    • ………

  13. 13.

    If you would have known that these diseases might affect you, your family and children from physical, psychological and social aspects, would you consider changing your decisions about your future?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  14. 14.

    Who or what do you think is most relevant and determining factor in your decision-making about your future in the frame of these diseases?

    1. a.

      My family

    2. b.

      My lover

    3. c.

      My common sense

    4. d.

      My friends

    5. e.

      My relatives

    6. f.

      My knowledge

    7. g.

      Another………

  15. 15.

    Do you know of any patients with any of these diseases around you?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  16. 16.

    Do you want to be enlightened about these diseases in your school?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

  17. 17.

    If you have the possibility of being a carrier of thalassemia or SCA, would you prefer to know it?

    1. a.

      Yes

    2. b.

      No

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Savas, N., Turhan, E., Inandi, T. et al. Hemoglobinopathy awareness among high school students in Antakya (Antioch), Turkey. Int J Hematol 91, 413–418 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12185-010-0539-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12185-010-0539-3

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