review · BMC Women s Health
Human papillomavirus causes nearly all cases of cervical cancer, yet vaccination can prevent over 75% of these cases. In Ethiopia, evidence regarding adolescent schoolgirls' awareness and vaccination status has remained inconclusive. A systematic review and meta-analysis synthesised eight studies covering 3,936 participants for knowledge and attitude, alongside five studies with 2,481 participants for vaccine uptake. Across these studies, the pooled proportion of girls with good knowledge was 55.12%, while 45.34% held a positive attitude, and only 42.05% had received the vaccine. Urban residency, good knowledge, and positive attitudes were strongly linked to higher vaccination rates. Schoolgirls with good knowledge were over six times more likely to be vaccinated, and urban residents were over four times more likely. The findings show low overall awareness and uptake, highlighting a need for structured school-based health education and community mobilisation.
Cervical cancer is a major global public health concern that is largely preventable through vaccination. Understanding current levels of awareness and uptake helps health authorities identify gaps in protection among adolescent girls. Demonstrating that knowledge, attitudes, and urban living directly influence uptake provides clear evidence on where public health campaigns must focus to improve vaccination rates.
The abstract does not indicate a commercial application pathway. However, the findings offer evidence that public health bodies, educational organisations, and non-governmental initiatives can apply immediately to guide policy and intervention design. The data directly supports the creation of targeted school seminars, community mobilisation efforts, and educational programmes to address low uptake among adolescent schoolgirls.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer is an international public health issue. Nearly all cases of cervical cancer are caused by the human papillomavirus. The HPV vaccine prevents more than 75% of cervical cancer. The extent to which adolescent girls' knowledge and uptake of the HPV vaccine have to be investigated in order to build effective promotion strategies and increase the uptake of the vaccine. The evidence that is currently available in this area is controversial and inconclusive. Hence, this study has estimated the pooled proportion of good knowledge, positive attitude, and uptake of the HPV vaccine and its associated factors among adolescent schoolgirls in Ethiopia. METHODS: statistics and Egger's test, respectively. The PROSPERO registration number for the review is CRD42023414030. RESULT: A total of eight studies comprising 3936 study participants for knowledge and attitude and five studies with 2,481 study participants for uptake of HPV were used to estimate the pooled proportions of good knowledge, a positive attitude, and uptake of the HPV vaccine, respectively. The pooled proportions of good knowledge, positive attitude, and uptake of the HPV vaccine were 55.12%, 45.34%, and 42.05%, respectively. Being an urban resident (OR = 4.17, 95% CI = 1.81, 9.58), having good knowledge (OR = 6.70, 95% CI = 3.43, 13.07), and a positive attitude (OR = 2.04, 95% CI = 1.51, 2.74), were significantly associated with the uptake of the vaccine. CONCLUSION: The pooled proportions of good knowledge, a positive attitude, and uptake of the HPV vaccine were low in Ethiopia. Being an urban resident and having good knowledge and a positive attitude towards the HPV vaccine were significantly associated with the uptake of the HPV vaccine. We recommend increasing adolescent knowledge, positive attitudes, and uptake of HPV vaccination through school-based seminars, health education, and community mobilization.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.1186/s12905-023-02412-1
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
