Comparrison of Knowledge and Attitude of High School Students on HIV/AIDS in Yazd Province in 2004 and 2013

AIDS as an infectious disease and the fourth leading cause of death in the worldwide is known as the deadliest diseases in this century. Today high school students are more exposed to the risk of HIV/AIDS than others. The purpose of this study was to compare the knowledge and attitude of high school students on HIV/AIDS in 2004 and 2013 in Yazd Province. This is a cross-sectional study in which 2146 students from different levels of education in Yazd Province (Yazd, Meybod, Ardakan and Mehriz) were investigated during the academic years 2004 and 2013. Data were then collected by questionnaire and by statistical software SPSS18, and were analyzed through T-test and ANOVA. The data showed that the majority of the student's knowledge in 2004 was good and in 2013 it was moderate. The attitude of most students (36.3 %) was positive in 2004, but in 2013 it was moderate (70.1%). The mean percentage of correct responses to transmission in 2004 was 84.36, but in 2013 it had been reduced to 77.93. The data in 2013 showed that between knowledge and gender, urban residence and education and between attitude and sex, years of education, urban residence and educational level, there is a statistically significant relationship (p<0.001). This study indicated that the knowledge and attitude of students in 2013 were lower and more undesirable than 2004. Considering high school students, for the reason that they are at risk, it is necessary to promote their awareness and attitude. Thus health education programs should be considered as a priority for them.