Knowledge and attitude of Tehran high school students on HIV/AIDS, 2005

Due to lack of access to information regarding AIDS and its prevention methods, this study assessed the knowledge and attitude of high school students in districts 6 and 11 in Tehran – 2005. In this cross–sectional study, 990 high school students selected by multi–step random sampling method were evaluated by NCHS questionnaire including 22 queries about knowledge and the remainder regarding attitude. Data were analyzed by Stepwise multivariable regression, Student's T and Mann – whitney tests. Nine hundred and ninety individuals (538 males and 452 females) participated in the study. 22.5% answered correctly to 5 out of 7 questions concerning the ways not resulting to transmission the disease. The least knowledge was related to the lack of possibility of disease transmission through insect bite. Regarding treatment modalities of AIDS, the students had few information about medications prescribed to prolong the survival time of the patients. 53.5% emphasized the necessity for AIDS screening like routine tests. 77% believed that they were able to protect themselves against HIV infection. 66.6% of subjects were afraid of being affected by the disease. The most popular source of awareness was found to be TV and the least one was radio. The knowledge of high school students of districts 6 and 11 of Tehran students regarding HIV infection was good. Meanwhile promotion from first level to higher levels of high school correlates to increased awareness.