Human Papilloma Virus

Background: Human PapillomaVirus (HPV) is responsible for a high number of infections in the sexually active population, especially in individuals between 16 and 25 years old and in the first years after sexual initiation. It is proven the association of this infection with malignant tumors, particularly Cervical Cancer. The relationship of HPV and other malignancies, such as cancer of the penis and oropharynx, has gained importance in recent decades. HPV is therefore a major health problem that affects both women and men. It is important to understand the knowledge of undergraduate health students since they will be future professionals who will play an important role in HPV prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Summary of Work: The main goal of this study is to verify the level of HPV knowledge and awareness among undergraduate students of Biomedical Sciences in Portugal. To investigate students knowledge about HPV, a 34 questions online questionnaire was developed. A total of 111 questionnaires were obtained, with most of the participants being girls (92.24%) and 21 years old the most frequent age (23.28%). Summary of Results: All respondents stated that they had heard about HPV and all indicated Cervical Cancer as the most important consequence of HPV infection. Most individuals specified that educational institutions were the main source of their HPV knowledge (93.1%). When questioned about the association of HPV with different diseases, only 14.66% of individuals selected wrong answers. Considering HPV prevention, 52.24% selected wrongly “Use of oral contraceptives”. Most participants were correct about HPV transmission and risk behaviours. However, 55.78% answered incorrectly concerning HPV symptoms. Knowledge about vaccination showed only 11.08% wrong answers. Discussion and Conclusions: In general, satisfactory knowledge about HPV was observed, with most individuals achieving final scores between 51% and 75%. We can conclude that the general knowledge is good. However, there is still wrong information and some lack of knowledge mostly about prevention and symptoms. Take-home Messages: Portuguese Biomedical Sciences students have satisfactory levels of knowledge about HPV. It is important to strengthen matters concerning HPV prevention and symptoms.