Parental perspective on human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in Serbia: Knowledge, attitudes and practice.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Assessing knowledge and attitudes of parents towards human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination of their children and estimating factors associated with parental positive attitude towards HPV immunization. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional. SETTING: Two Community Health Centers. A total of 282 adult parents of boys and/or girls who presented at the pediatrician's office with their child aged ≤18 years from December 2015 to May 2016. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: HPV vaccination coverage with one dose, knowledge and attitudes towards HPV vaccination. Parental knowledge was tested through a set of 10 items such as the infectious nature of HPV, mode of transmission, symptoms and its association with cervical cancer and circumstances surrounding HPV vaccine in Serbia. Answers were graded on a 5-point Likert scale from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree". RESULTS: Coverage with one dose of HPV vaccine was 2.0%. Majority of parents knew that the vaccine existed (71.0%). One quarter of parents confirmed that their child should be vaccinated against HPV. Parents expressed highest level of agreement with the statement that HPV vaccination in Serbia is not sufficiently promoted (4.17 ±â€¯1.21 points). Having female child and more knowledge on HPV were independently associated with positive attitude towards vaccination among parents of children aged <9 years. Having received recommendation for HPV vaccination from a pediatrician was independently associated with positive attitude towards HPV vaccination among parents of children aged ≥9 years. CONCLUSION: Coverage with one dose of HPV vaccine is low. Health-care authorities are urged to consider inclusion of HPV vaccination in immunization schedule.

[Knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of adolescents about reproductive health at Belgrade territory].

INTRODUCTION: Over the past few years, the results of numerous studies have emphasized the importance of adolescents' insufficient knowledge about reproductive health (RH), which implies an increasing trend of unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of adolescents about RH in the population of Belgrade. METHOD: The study comprised 292 students from three secondary schools in Belgrade involved in the research February 1-15, 2008. The semistructured questionnaire about adolescents' knowledge, attitudes and behaviour about RH was filled in by themselves in presence of a student-investigator who provided assistance when necessary. Statistical analysis included X2test and correlation analysis. RESULTS: Most adolescents (70.5%) showed the medium level of knowledge about RH. In our study, 33.6% of adolescents were sexually active. Sexually active students achieved a better score on the test about RH compared with the students who have not had sexual intercourse yet (chi2-test = 34.003; p < 0.01). The average age of the first sexual intercourse was 16.5 years for females, and 15.7 years for males. The students with a lower average grade in school education experienced the first sexual intercourse earlier compared to the adolescents with a higher average grade during the school education (p = 0.485; p < 0.01). The most common (73.4%) source of information about RH is mass media. CONCLUSION: The results of our study indicate the need for more intensive and comprenhensive educational programmes in the area of RH for adolescents in our country.

[The prevalence of childhood obesity in a sample of schoolchildren in Belgrade].

INTRODUCTION: Obesity in children has become a global epidemic with many health and social consequences that often continue into adulthood. According to the International Obesity Task Force report from 2005, Serbia has had one of the most rapidly increasing trends in the prevalence of childhood obesity during the last 10 years. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of childhood obesity in a sample of schoolchildren in Belgrade and to investigate the correlation between child obesity and the presence of selected diseases. METHOD: The study comprised of 854 pupils from two primary schools in Belgrade. The anthropometric data, as well as the data on the presence of selected diseases were obtained from medical records of regular health check-ups in the period from 2006-2007. The classification of childhood obesity was done according to the WHO percentiles reference data for obesity and overweight in children. Statistical analyses included chi 2 test and correlation analysis. RESULTS: In our sample of schoolchildren, the prevalence of obesity was 30.7%. The following diseases were present among the pupils: spinal deformities 192 (22.5%), chest wall deformities 90 (10.5%) and foot deformities 226 (26.5%). Statistically significant correlation was registered between child obesity and the presence of spinal (p=0.192; p=0.001) and foot deformities (p=0.099; p=0.049). Chest wall deformities were more frequent in the group of children with normal weight compared with the obese group (chi 2=0.206; p=0.052). Statistically significant correlation was registered between childhood obesity and the presence of hypertension (p=0.261; p=0.001). Regular physical activity was in correlation with the absence of childhood obesity (p=-0.093; p=0.055). CONCLUSIONS: In our sample of Belgrade schoolchildren, we detected a high prevalence of obesity. Furthermore, a significant correlation between childhood obesity and the presence of hypertension, spinal deformities and foot deformities were also observed.