Factors associated with preventive behaviors of COVID-19 among children with congenital heart disease: Application of protection motivation theory

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is one of the underlying medical conditions that put children at increased risk for coronavirus. This study aimed to predict preventive behaviors of COVID‑19 among children with CHD based on the protection motivation theory (PMT).

This cross‑sectional study was conducted from March 2021 to April 2021, on 240 children 3–7 years with CHD whose data had been registered in Persian Registry of Cardiovascular Disease/CHD (PROVE/CHD) System in Isfahan, Iran. The research variables were measured using an online researcher‑made questionnaire that was based on PMT constructs. The collected data were analyzed using statistical tests (e.g., Pearson correlation coefficient and linear regression analysis).

From a total of 240 participants (mean age of 4.81 ± 1.50) in the present study, 122 (50.8%) were girls. The most common types of CHD among children participating in this study were related to atrial septal defect (ASD) (29.2%, n = 70) and ventricular septal defect (VSD) (26.7%, n = 64), respectively. Protective behaviors showed a significant correlation with all constructs of PMT. The PMT constructs explained 41.0% of the variances in protective behavior, in which the perceived reward (β = 0.325) and perceived self‑efficacy (β = 0.192) was the most important, respectively.

The results of this study showed well the effectiveness of PMT on the preventive behaviors of COVID‑19 in children with CHD. This theory can be used to teach preventive behaviors of COVID‑19 to children with CHD in education programs.