Effects of the source of information and knowledge of dengue fever on the mosquito control behavior of residents of border areas of Yunnan, China

Xinchang Lun; Rui Yang; Linghong Lin; Yiguan Wang; Jun Wang; Yuhong Guo; Pengcheng Xiu; Caiying Zhu; Qiyong Liu; Lei Xu; Fengxia Meng

doi:10.1186/s13071-023-05916-9

Effects of the source of information and knowledge of dengue fever on the mosquito control behavior of residents of border areas of Yunnan, China

Parasit Vectors. 2023 Sep 1;16(1):311. doi: 10.1186/s13071-023-05916-9.

Authors

Xinchang Lun¹, Rui Yang², Linghong Lin³, Yiguan Wang¹, Jun Wang¹, Yuhong Guo¹, Pengcheng Xiu¹, Caiying Zhu⁴, Qiyong Liu¹, Lei Xu⁵, Fengxia Meng⁶

Affiliations

¹ National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, People's Republic of China.
² Yunnan Institute of Parasitic Diseases Control, Pu´er, 665000, Yunnan, People's Republic of China.
³ Fuzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Fuzhou, 350004, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
⁴ Changsha Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Changsha, 410004, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
⁵ Vanke School of Public Health, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, People's Republic of China.
⁶ National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, 102206, People's Republic of China. mengfengxia@icdc.cn.

Abstract

Background: Strengthening the mosquito control measures undertaken by residents of an area where dengue fever is present can significantly decrease the spread of this disease. The aim of this study was to explore the effects of the source of information and knowledge of dengue fever on the mosquito control behavior of residents of areas at high risk of this disease to determine effective ways of enhancing this behavior.

Methods: A survey was conducted via face-to-face interviews or questionnaires between March and May 2021 in three regions of the province of Yunnan, China. The survey included basic information about the respondents, the source(s) of their dengue fever information, the level of their dengue fever knowledge, and the measures they had implemented to control mosquitoes. Principal component analysis was used to extract the main components of the sources of information. Correlation analysis and structural equation analysis were used to explore the impact of the sources of information and residents' dengue fever knowledge on their mosquito control behavior.

Results: Publicity achieved through mass media, including official WeChat accounts, magazines/newspapers, poster leaflets, television/radio and the Internet, had a direct effect on dengue fever knowledge and mosquito control behavior, and indirectly affected mosquito control behavior through dengue fever knowledge. Organized publicity campaigns, including information provided by medical staff and through community publicity, had a direct effect on dengue fever knowledge and indirectly affected mosquito control behavior through dengue fever knowledge. The residents' level of dengue fever knowledge had a significant, positive, direct effect on their mosquito control behavior.

Conclusions: Mosquito control is an important measure for the prevention and control of outbreaks of dengue fever. An effective source of information can improve the level of dengue fever knowledge among residents and thus enhance their mosquito control behavior.

Keywords: Dengue fever knowledge; Influential factors; Information sources; Mosquito control behavior.

MeSH terms

Animals
China / epidemiology
Dengue* / epidemiology
Dengue* / prevention & control
Disease Outbreaks
Humans
Information Sources*
Mosquito Control