The Survey of Adolescents’ Knowledge and Attitude towards Acne Vulgaris

Acne is the most common dermatological condition worldwide that affects almost everyone once in a lifetime. The consequences of the disease go beyond the few symptoms that appear on a persons face. The significant of this disease should not be overlooked because it can have many adverse psychological and social effects on the patient. This study aims to investigate the knowledge and attitude of adolescents in the south of Iran about acne in 2019.

The present study is a descriptive-analytic and cross-sectional study that carried out among 351 high school students in southern Iran in 2019. The stratified sampling technique has been used in the study. Data collection tools included a researchermade questionnaire for knowledge and attitude toward acne that was completed through self-reporting. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 23. The significance level was considered less than 0.05.

The mean score of knowledge and attitude about acne were 11.3 ± 3.6 (range=0-27) and 22.8 ± 3.6 (range= 8-32), respectively. Knowledge of acne was low in 9.1% of students, moderate in 87.2%, and high in 3.7%. The attitude toward acne was desirable in 4.8% of students, moderate in 82.8% and poor in 12.4%. The mean scores of attitude were similar in both sexes; howevere, the mean scores of knowledge in females were significantly higher than males (P=0.015).

All in all, the results of this study showed that students’ knowledge and attitude about acne vulgaris are mostly moderate. Based on the results, it is recommended to provide the necessary planning to increase the knowledge and attitude of high school students about acne vulgaris in southern Iran.