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Objective: To evaluate human papillomavirus [HPV] vaccine knowledge, the reason for receiving HPV vaccination and
comparison of HPV vaccine knowledge by general characteristics.
Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we randomly sampled 300 of 1,366 women who received HPV vaccination with bivalent and quadrivalent vaccines during October 2013 to March 2014. Data were collected by interviewing women before the second or third dose of HPV vaccine. Data were analyzed by frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation [SD]. HPV vaccine knowledge and general characteristics were compared by one-way ANOVA.
Results: The women were 21 to 68 years of age (mean, 43.97 years), predominantly had sexual experience (74.7%), had obtained Bachelor’s degree or higher (69.0%), and had monthly income
>20,000 baht (53.3%). The mean HPV vaccine knowledge score was 7.31, and most women had good (52.0%) or moderate knowledge (33.0%). Main reasons for receiving HPV vaccination included
benefits/cost-effectiveness (99.3%), fear of cervical cancer (93.3%) and recommended by medical personnel (81.3%). Significant differences were observed for HPV vaccine knowledge according to age group (p<0.001), monthly income (p = 0.015) and educational attainment (p = 0.015).
Conclusion: Proactive strategies about HPV vaccine knowledge could lead to health equity towards sustainable prevention of cervical cancer in Thai women.
Keywords: Knowledge, HPV vaccine, HPV infection