Willingness to accept monkeypox vaccine and its correlates among men who have sex with men in Southern China: a web-based online cross-sectional study

Front Public Health. 2024 Feb 7:12:1289918. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1289918. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Background: The May 2022 global outbreak of monkeypox (MPX) poses a threat to the health of men who have sex with men. However, there is limited data on the willingness of MSM to receive monkeypox vaccination in Southern China. This study aimed to assess the knowledge of MPX, concerns regarding MPX, and willingness to receive monkeypox vaccination, as well as their correlates, among MSM in China.

Methods: We conducted a Web-based online survey of MSM in Southern China from August to September 2022. Data were collected on the socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge, worries, concerns regarding MPX and willingness to receive monkeypox vaccination. Multivariate logistic regression was employed to explore the factors associated with willingness to receive monkeypox vaccination.

Results: A total of 1903 participants completed the survey. Among them, approximately 69.9% reported being aware of MPX awareness, 94.1% of the participants supported the promotion of monkeypox vaccination. The majority of participants (91.4%) expressed their willingness to receive monkeypox vaccination. Participants who considered monkeypox vaccination safe [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 4.82, 95% CI: 1.35-17.18], agreed on the necessity of government promotion of monkeypox vaccination in China (aOR = 6.03, 95% CI: 1.07-33.93), believed in prioritizing monkeypox vaccination for MSM (aOR = 5.01, 95% CI: 1.10-22.71), and had friends or sexual partners who had already received the monkeypox or smallpox vaccination (aOR = 10.37, 95% CI: 2.11-50.99) are more likely to be vaccinated. Conversely, married individuals (aOR = 0.13, 95% CI: 0.03-0.47), those engaging in anal sex 4-6 times per week in the past 3 months (aOR = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.09-0.77) expressed hesitancy toward monkeypox vaccination.

Conclusion: There was a high willingness to receive monkeypox vaccination among MSM in China. The hesitancy toward the monkeypox vaccine can be effectively mitigated by addressing concerns about its safety and potential adverse reactions. Moreover, increasing acceptance of the monkeypox vaccination among MSM and their peers is crucial, as social influence significantly impacts vaccine attitudes and behaviors.

Keywords: hesitancy; men who have sex with men (MSM); monkeypox (MPX); perception; vaccination.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • China / epidemiology
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • HIV Infections* / epidemiology
  • Homosexuality, Male
  • Humans
  • Internet
  • Male
  • Mpox (monkeypox)*
  • Sexual and Gender Minorities*
  • Smallpox Vaccine*

Substances

  • Smallpox Vaccine

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by the Guangxi Scientific and Technological Key Project (Guike 2022AC23005 and Guike 2022JJA141110), Thousands of Young and Middle-aged Key Teachers Training Program in Guangxi Colleges and Universities (to B-YL), and the Guangxi Medical University Training Program for Distinguished Young Scholars (to J-JJ).