Chickenpox Vaccination: Knowledge and Attitude of Child-Bearing Women of Abraka, Delta State, Nigeria

Chickenpox is a common childhood disease which is highly contagious. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that in countries where chickenpox is an important public health burden, chickenpox vaccination should be introduced into their routine immunization programs. This present study is to ascertain the level of knowledge and attitude towards chickenpox infection and its vaccination among child-bearing women in Abraka, Delta State, Nigeria. A cross-sectional descriptive study design was adopted to assess the knowledge and attitude towards chickenpox vaccination among 140 randomly selected child-bearing mothers residing in Abraka community. Of the 140 respondents, a greater number was within 30-40 years of age (61.4%). Most of the respondents (95.7%) had heard about chickenpox and 77.1% stated correctly its mode of transmitted. Majority were well aware of the signs and symptoms of the infection which included itching rashes (85.7%), blisters and red spots (66.4%), and fever (61.4%). Despite the fact that most of the respondents (72.9%) knew about chickenpox vaccination, only very few (19.3%) claimed to know the vaccine used, with less than half of the respondents (44.3%) correctly indicating two doses as the complete dosing for chickenpox vaccination. A greater proportion (91.4%) of the women had vaccinated their children against chickenpox, and believed that it was effective (82.1%). A high level of knowledge and positive attitude towards chickenpox vaccination among child-bearing women was evident in this study, however, it is paramount to encourage pregnant women and mothers attending antenatal care to immunize their children against vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs).

Keywords
Vaccination; chickenpox; vaccine-preventable diseases; knowledge; Abraka.