Abstract

Background: Mosquito-borne disease poses a great burden to the society. It can be easily prevented through appropriate knowledge, positive attitude, and good practices. Japanese encephalitis (JE) is among one of these diseases, transmitted by culex mosquito. It is a major public health problem in India.
Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the level of community participation in control and prevention of JE in rural area of Uttar Pradesh (UP).
Materials and Methods: It was a cross-sectional observation study. The study area was selected purposively. Non-probability consecutive sampling was done. A pre-designed and semi-structured questionnaire used for this study. Cronbach’s reliability test applied to access the internal consistency of various domains of knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP). Assessment was done using a scoring system. Respondent level was defined as “good” and “poor.” A 60% cutoff point was taken for this. The sociodemographic characteristics, KAP of the sample was described using frequency and percentage table. KAP scores were calculated and categorized as “good” and “poor” as above- mentioned criteria.
Results: A total of 401 households were interviewed during study period. Most of the respondents were aged between 21 and 35 years (60.1%). Almost 70.1% have pucca house. In 67.3% of houses, water drainage was unsatisfactory. Only 52.9% of respondents heard about JE. Knowledge about symptoms of JE was fair, while about its spread, reservoir of virus, breeding place of mosquito, and biting habit were poor. Attitude of one-third of respondent was satisfactory for all items asked. Practices were comparatively good. Although nearby stagnant water was a major issue. 80.5% respondents never removed this water. Correlation between knowledge and attitude was very strong (r = 0.880). A bivariate logistic analysis revealed the s sociodemographic variables such as gender, age, education, occupation, and category has no significant effect on KAP level of respondents. Conclusion: There was a felt need of mass communication and education program specifically oriented for mosquito-borne disease. This can enhance positive attitude and good practices further.