Knowledge, behavior and need for intervention on infectious diseases among town and country primary school students

Objective To investigate the knowledge,behavior and the need for intervention on infectious diseases and to provide evidence for specific intervention.Methods Questionnaire survey and behavior observation were conducted among 800 pupils from a county and an urban district in Shandong province with multistage cluster sampling.Results The knowledge rates about tuberculosis,influenza,and mumps among the urban pupils were 55.5%,52.5%,and 38.8% and the rates among the rural pupils were 59.4%,39.9%,and 39.4%,respectively.The rates of washing hand before eating and after toiletuse,healthy manner in coughing and spitting among the rural pupils were 81.5% and 77.8%,and 68.5% and the rates among the urban pupils were 72.5% and 57.2%,and 54.0%,respectively.There were 72.8% of the urban pupils and 65.2% of the rural pupils expecting to knowthe knowledge through consulting the doctor and 48.0% of the rural pupils and 47.2% of the ruban pupils expecting to knowthe knowledge thorugh lectrues of the teachers.Conclusion The knowledge rates about infectionus disease among urban and rural pupils were relatively low.The rates of knowledge and related preventive behoviour among rural pupils were higher than those among urban pupils.