Knowledge and attitudes of Senegalese sailors about HIV/AIDS

Abstract

Background: In West Africa there is little information on the behavior of sailors with respect to HIV/AIDS.

Aim: The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and attitudes on HIV/AIDS and their risk factors.

Materials and methods: This was a cross-sectional study on a sample of 400 sailors. Information was collected on knowledge and attitudes. Multiple logistic regression was performed to analyse the factors related to knowledge and attitudes.

Results: The mean age was 38.1 ± 9.8 years. Among sailors, 7.5% knew the 3 main modes of HIV transmissionand 48.3% did not sail with a crew member infected with HIV. Knowledge was related to occupationalcategory (OR = 14.07 [5.40–36.65]). Stigmatisation was related to education (OR = 0.45 [0.27–0.74]) and fear (0.19 [0.09–0.41]).

Conclusions: Sailors have a low level of knowledge and negative attitudes towards people living with HIV. Intervention simplemented must take into account the low level of knowledge and the mobility of the target population.