Rabies: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors in Armenia

Abstract

Background information: Rabies is a global public health issue accounting for approximately 55,000 human deaths annually. Many rabid animal bites and several cases of human rabies have been recorded in Armenia during the previous years. Moreover, Armenia has adequate conditions for this disease to prosper, posing high risks of the disease becoming an epidemic. No research on rabies in the Republic of Armenia appears in the literature. Methods: In Spring 2011, a qualitative study assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of the general population of Armenia regarding rabies. Snowball sampling was used to include 52 inhabitants, aged 18-65 from two Armenian cities: Yerevan and Gyumri in eight focus group discussions. Results: All participants demonstrated limited knowledge about the disease causes, transmission, clinical signs, methods of protection and prevention. Formal public education campaigns are not implemented. Most rabies information is acquired through word-of-mouth, which is often inaccurate and causes more confusion than benefit. Knowledge and perceptions differed slightly between cities: Yerevan participants discussed more issues. However, these did not incorporate such knowledge that could in any way help in disease prevention and treatment. The main difference between generations was that the older generation expressed a tendency of relying more on tradition than the younger generation. Conclusions: The population of Armenia has limited knowledge concerning rabies. This lack of public awareness about rabies sets the stage for a possible epidemic. Better surveillance, increased transparency, public education efforts, and minor policy changes such as veterinarians providing information on the disease to their clientele are actions that can assist in addressing the issues identified during this study.