Onchocerciasis Knowledge among Crop Farmers in Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Onchocerciasis is an endemic disease in Enugu State that imposes a debilitating medical and economic burden on crop farmers. This  study assessed crop farmers’ knowledge of Enugu State. A cross-sectional survey of 372 farmers, selected through a multistage sampling  technique, was conducted using the Onchocerciasis Knowledge Questionnaire (OKQ). It elicited responses regarding the causes, signs  and symptoms, preventive measures, and treatment/treatment options. The results indicated that farmers had poor knowledge (46.4%).  The respondents had good knowledge of causation (68.5%) and treatment options (56.7%) but exhibited poor knowledge of signs and  symptoms (30.1%) and preventive measures (33.1%). They also exhibited substantial misconceptions about Onchocerciasis. The study  also found that females (77.5%) were more knowledgeable than males (68.7%), that those with only primary education (88.9 %) were  more knowledgeable, and that older farmers (75.4%) were more knowledgeable than younger farmers. Independent bivariate logistic  regression indicated that a statistically significant association existed between marital status and knowledge and between level of  education and knowledge, while the association between gender and knowledge, and age and knowledge was not significant at a  significance level of 0.05. It was recommended that health education programmes be mounted by requisite State Ministries and  Parastatals to arm residents with the knowledge for personal protection and to contribute effectively to ongoing intervention  programmes in Enugu State.