Secondary school students' knowledge, attitude, and practices towards epilepsy in Nsukka City, Enugu State

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dc.contributor.authorAnene-Okeke CG
dc.contributor.authorAnosike C
dc.contributor.authorAluh DO
dc.contributor.authorOdo LE
dc.date.accessioned2022-07-23T10:38:09Z
dc.date.available2022-07-23T10:38:09Z
dc.date.issued2020
dc.descriptionEpilepsy & Behavior
dc.description.abstractBackground Epilepsy is the most common noninfectious neurologic disease in Nigeria and other developing African countries. Epilepsy remains a stigmatized disease. The stigma stems from the traditional African belief, which views epilepsy as a spiritual disease. A lack of information and illiteracy has been blamed as the cause of the stigmatization. Aims The aim of the present study was to assess the awareness, knowledge, and attitude towards epilepsy among secondary school students in Nsukka. Methods This was a cross-sectional survey using a validated, self-administered questionnaire comprising four sections: demographic characteristics, awareness, knowledge, and attitude towards people living with epilepsy (PLWE). Data were analyzed using the IBM SPSS Statistics 23. Descriptive analysis (frequencies, percentage, mean, and standard deviations) were used to summarize the data. The relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and knowledge score and attitude score was performed using chi-square analysis. Statistical significance was set as a p-value <0.05. Results The majority of the students (87.4%) had heard of epilepsy as a disease. The most common source of information was the electronic media (21.5%). More than half (61.6%) had witnessed a convulsion in the past, and 36.9% knew someone with epilepsy. The majority of the students (66.7%) believed that epilepsy is caused by witchcraft. Jerking (77.3%) and loss of consciousness (82.4%) were identified as the commonest manifestation of epilepsy. Regarding treatment management of epilepsy, 81.3% of the students believe the use of orthodox medicine, while 85.4% would insert a spoon in the mouth when a seizure occurs as part of first-aid treatment. Nearly half of the students had good knowledge (48.1%) of epilepsy and a positive attitude (46.5%) towards the disease. The students' knowledge was associated with their school (X2 = 23.21, p = 0.001). However, students' attitude towards epilepsy was associated with their schools (X2 = 5.93, p = 0.015) and their guardians' level of education (X2 = 14.65, p = 0.012). Conclusion The findings of this study suggest poor knowledge and attitude towards epilepsy among secondary school students in Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria.
dc.identifier.citation10.1016/j.yebeh.2020.107441
dc.identifier.issn1525-5050
dc.identifier.urihttps://nerd.ethesis.ng/handle/123456789/169
dc.language.isoen
dc.subjectEpilepsy
dc.subjectSecondary school students
dc.subjectKnowledge
dc.subjectAttitude
dc.subjectNsukka
dc.subjectNigeria
dc.titleSecondary school students' knowledge, attitude, and practices towards epilepsy in Nsukka City, Enugu State
dc.typeArticle
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