Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Genotype Screening Among Undergraduate Students of the University of Abuja, Nigeria

The knowledge, attitude and practice of genotype screening for sickle cell are very important in the control and prevention of sickle cell disease (SCD). The objectives of this study therefore are to determine the knowledge, attitude and practice of genotype screening among undergraduate students of the University of Abuja, Nigeria. The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. A sample size of 256 was studied and multi-stage sampling technique was used to select the faculties, departments and participants. Data was collected by using self-administered, semi-structured questionnaire. Associations between variables and proportions were ascertained using Chi-square tests at 5% level of statistical significance. Most of the respondents were males (51.1%) and majority belong to age group of 21-25 years. About 98% of the students have good knowledge of genotype screening for sickle cell. Also, 93.8% of the students had positive attitude to genotype screening and 76.6% of the participants had ever had a genotype screening with 52.7% having AA genotype, 18.4% AS and 5.5% with SS genotype. In addition, the study revealed a statistically significant association between good knowledge of genotype screening and the practice (98.0% vs. 58.2%; p value <0.003). Since the students have good knowledge and positive attitude to genotype screening, increased awareness on genotype screening should be encouraged so as to increase the uptake of screening and reduce the burden of sickle cell disease.