Knowledge, attitudes and practices about vaccine-preventable diseases and vaccinations of children among pregnant women in Greece

Helena C Maltezou; Marianna Theodora; Theodore Lytras; Aikaterini Fotiou; Emily Nino; Maria Theodoridou; Alexandros Rodolakis

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.10.003

Knowledge, attitudes and practices about vaccine-preventable diseases and vaccinations of children among pregnant women in Greece

Vaccine. 2020 Nov 10;38(48):7654-7658. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.10.003. Epub 2020 Oct 17.

Authors

Helena C Maltezou¹, Marianna Theodora², Theodore Lytras³, Aikaterini Fotiou⁴, Emily Nino⁴, Maria Theodoridou⁵, Alexandros Rodolakis²

Affiliations

¹ Directorate for Epidemiological Surveillance and Interventions of Infectious Diseases, National Public Health Organization, Athens, Greece. Electronic address: helen-maltezou@ath.forthnet.gr.
² First Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Athens, Alexandra General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
³ Department of Database Design, Statistics and Data Management, National Public Health Organization, Athens, Greece.
⁴ Neonatal Department, Elena Venizelou Maternity Hospital, Athens, Greece.
⁵ First Department of Pediatrics, University of Athens, Aghia Sophia Children Hospital, Athens, Greece.

PMID: 33077302
DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.10.003

Abstract

Vaccine hesitancy has been recognized by the World Health Organization as one of ten threats to public health globally in 2019. Pregnant women constitute an extremely important group for the study of knowledge and attitudes towards pediatric vaccinations. This is a cross-sectional survey conducted in two maternity hospitals in Athens. A standardized questionnaire was used. A total of 814 pregnant women with a mean age of 33.1 years and a mean gestational age of 24.4 weeks were studied. Overall, 717 (89%) of 804 pregnant women reported that they intend to vaccinate their baby in accordance with the National Vaccination Program, 7 (1%) that they do not, while 80 (10%) reported that they have not decided yet. The women provided a mean of 11.4 correct replies out of 14 questions about vaccine-preventable diseases and vaccines (mean knowledge score: 81.5%). A pediatrician has been recognized as the source for information about vaccines in most cases (611/809, 75.5%), while in 215 (26.6%) the internet was also used. Overall, pregnant women trusted physicians about information for vaccines ("very much trusted" in 55.9% and "quite trusted" in 40% of cases). Lastly, 642 (81%) women agreed with the statement "vaccinations should be mandatory for school entry" while 70 (9%) women agreed with the statement "parents should have the right to refuse their children vaccinations". A multivariate analysis found that a gestational age of ≤20 weeks (OR = 2.33, CIs: 1.27-4.28, p-value = 0.006), having another child (OR = 4.44, CIs: 2.30-8.58, p-value < 0.001), a history of influenza vaccination (OR = 2.54, CIs = 1.37-4.71, p-value = 0.003), and a higher knowledge score about vaccine-preventable diseases and vaccines (OR = 1.33, CIs: 1.23-1.45, p-value < 0.001) were significantly associated with an increased probability to get their child vaccinated in accordance with the National Vaccination Program.

Keywords: Attitudes; Hesitancy; Knowledge; Pediatric vaccines; Practices; Pregnant women.

MeSH terms

Adult
Child
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Greece
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice*
Humans
Infant
Pregnancy
Pregnant Women*
Surveys and Questionnaires
Vaccination
Vaccine-Preventable Diseases*