Journal Article

Knowledge of Sexual Transmission of Zika Virus Among Women Who Are Pregnant or Intend to Become Pregnant, Arizona, 2017

Ernst, Kacey, Brown, Kristen Pogreba, Garcia, David O., Anderson, Elizabeth J., Koss, Mary P., Lopez, Elise, Austhof, Erika, Hayden, Mary H., McCuin, Dametreea Carr

2022

Overview

Objectives Levels of knowledge about the sexual transmission of Zika virus are consistently low in populations at risk of a mosquito-borne outbreak, including among women of childbearing age and women who are pregnant or intend to become pregnant. We investigated the effectiveness of sources of public health messaging about sexual transmission to women who are pregnant or intend to become pregnant in Arizona. Methods In 2017, we conducted an Arizona-statewide survey 15 months after the initial release of US guidelines on sexual transmission of Zika virus. We used Poisson regression, adjusting for demographic factors, to estimate the likelihood among women who were pregnant or intended to become pregnant of knowing that Zika virus is sexually transmitted relative to other women of childbearing age. We used multinomial logistic regression models to explore associations with most used health information sources, either in person (eg, medical providers) or online (eg, Facebook), categorized by extent of dependability. Results Women who were pregnant or intended to become pregnant had similarly poor knowledge of the sexual transmission of Zika virus as compared with other women of childbearing age (adjusted prevalence ratio = 1.14 [95% CI, 0.83-1.55]). Only about one-third of all respondents reported knowledge of sexual transmission. Reliance on high- vs low-dependability information sources, whether in person or online, did not predict the extent of Zika virus knowledge among women who were pregnant or intended to become pregnant. Conclusion As late as the second year of local Zika virus transmission in the United States, in 2017, women in Arizona were not receiving sufficient information about sexual transmission, even though it was available. To prepare for possible future outbreaks, research should explore which aspects of Zika information campaigns were ineffective or inefficient.

• Publisher: Sage Publications, Inc,SAGE Publications,SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subject: Age / Animals / Arizona - epidemiology / At risk populations / Childbearing / Childbearing age / Childbirth & labor / Demography / Disease Outbreaks / Disease transmission / Female / Health information / Humans / Information dissemination / Information sources / Internet / Knowledge / Mosquitoes / Outbreaks / Pregnancy / Pregnancy Complications, Infectious - epidemiology / Public health / Regression analysis / Regression models / Respondents / Sexual behavior / Sexual transmission / Sexually transmitted diseases / STD / United States - epidemiology / Vector-borne diseases / Viruses / Women / Womens health / Zika Virus / Zika Virus Infection - epidemiology / Zika Virus Infection - prevention & control