Evaluation of Parental Knowledge about Measles

Introduction: Measles is a highly contagious disease (1) and it's endemic in the most parts of the world, but its prevalence has declined in the result of vaccination programs. The disease is spread by respiratory secretions and it is contagious 7-10 days after exposure to 5 days after rash's appearance (2),(3). Complications of measles include pneumonia, otitis media and encephalitis that can be created several years after acute infection of measles (1).

Aim: The aim of this study was investigation of parental awareness about measles in order to develop appropriate training programs for parents and increase their awareness and prevention of complications of measles. Materials and

Method: Total units were 562 parents with children in 6 months to 3 years referred to community health centers of Borujerd, they were selected through cluster randomly method, they were measured based on a questionnaire that collects information about the knowledge of parents (about measles disease, symptoms, complications, diagnosis, treatment and prevention), and data were analyzed by SPSS16.

Results: Mean knowledge score for men was 23.45±9.0 and for women was 24.14±7.8 (p>0.05). But average knowledge score in parents with children with a history of measles infection was higher compared with other parents (p=0.001). Parents with high education level and higher, had a higher awareness score. 83.3% of parents mentioned at least one obvious symptom of disease and 95.2% of parents mentioned at least one of the complications. Maximum symptom mentioned was the incidence of red seeds (rush) on the face, and the most common complication noted was otitis media.

Conclusion: In this study, parents were required education and gain awareness about how to start measles symptoms, complications and treatment of disease. Therefore, it is recommended that be set regular training programs for parents about common pediatric infectious diseases by health staff.