Conhecimento sobre a infecção e vacinação contra o Papilomavírus humano em estudantes do ensino fundamental da rede pública em Campo Grande-MS

Abstract

The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI), which can cause warts on the skin and mucous membranes of the genital region, as well as cancer due to infection with viral types of high oncogenic risk. The increasingly early onset of sexual activity leads to high vulnerability of adolescents in relation to STIs, including those caused by HPV. The lack or limitation of knowledge among adolescents about this virus, as well as the lack of knowledge of its relationship with the development of cervical cancer and others, is relevant and should be questioned. Prevention through vaccination is the most effective method and should be encouraged among those in the indicated age group, as vaccination coverage is currently below expectations. The research aimed to analyze knowledge about HPV infection and encourage vaccination against HPV in public schools. This was a descriptive, cross-sectional, quantitative research, with primary data collection, through structured interviews among students from the 6th to the 9th grade of the municipal schools Professor Luiz Cavallon and Domingos Gonçalves Gomes, in the municipality of Campo Grande - MS. Most participants were aged between 11 and 14 years and were female (63.4%). The data showed that most students have heard about HPV (70.1%), but few know what the virus causes. Among the participants, only 38.1% stated that it is a virus that causes cancer and 11.3% answered that it is a virus that causes warts. The existence of the vaccine against HPV was reported by 84.5%; 89.7% think that this vaccine is important and 57.7% knew that the vaccine is available free of charge for boys and girls aged 9 to 14 years. It was pointed out that 49% of the students reported being vaccinated, 38.7% would not be vaccinated and 12.4% could not answer. As for the number of doses, 25.3% reported two doses, 19.1% one dose, 14.4% could not answer how many doses and 41.2% reported not having taken any dose. However, when consulting the data regarding vaccination (ESUS and vaccination records) a higher vaccination coverage was found, 62.3% of students were vaccinated and 32.5% were not. Vaccination actions, after educational action at school, resulted in 79 vaccinated students, most of them with the first dose (70.9%, n=56) and the other 29.1% (n=23) received the second. It was concluded that there is a lack of knowledge among the participants, since most have already heard about HPV, however, most teenagers did not know how to state its relationship with cervical cancer. The applicability and relevance of the study for the Family Health Strategy (ESF) occurred through the effective increase in the amount of vaccine doses administered and through the dissemination of knowledge about HPV, favoring the prevention against this infection. It is recommended that strategies that can increase vaccine adherence be optimized by offering vaccination in schools and intensifying health education actions. Descriptors: papillomaviridae; vaccines; cervical neoplasms; knowledge; Family Health Strategy.