Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices concerning Black Fungus during COVID-19 Pandemic among Students of Bangladesh: An Online-Based Cross-Sectional Survey

Md. Akhtarul Islam, Mst. Tanmin Nahar, Md. Nafiul Alam Khan, Zahid Ahmad Butt, A. S. M. Monjur-Al-Hossain, Sutapa Dey Barna, Md. Mostafizur Rahman, Henry Ratul Halder, Mohammed Zaber Hossain and Md. Tanvir Hossain
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Md. Akhtarul Islam: Statistics Discipline, Science Engineering & Technology School, Khulna University, Khulna 9208, Bangladesh
Mst. Tanmin Nahar: Statistics Discipline, Science Engineering & Technology School, Khulna University, Khulna 9208, Bangladesh
Md. Nafiul Alam Khan: Statistics Discipline, Science Engineering & Technology School, Khulna University, Khulna 9208, Bangladesh
Zahid Ahmad Butt: School of Public Health Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
A. S. M. Monjur-Al-Hossain: Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh
Sutapa Dey Barna: Department of Business Administration, International Standard University, 69 Mohakhali C/A, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh
Md. Mostafizur Rahman: Department of Disaster and Human Security Management, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Bangladesh University of Professionals, Dhaka 1216, Bangladesh
Henry Ratul Halder: Department of Community Health Sciences, Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3E 0W3, Canada
Mohammed Zaber Hossain: Department of English, Bangladesh Military Academy, Bhatiari, Chattogram 4315, Bangladesh
Md. Tanvir Hossain: Sociology Discipline, Social Science School, Khulna University, Khulna 9208, Bangladesh

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 15, 1-19

Abstract: Background: Infection with COVID-19 and its control entailing steroids and immunomodulatory medications disrupted normal immune function. The ensuing immunological disorder led to the rise of another infection—Black Fungus (Mucormycosis). However, the spread of Black Fungus can be minimized through proper knowledge, informed attitude, and conscious preventive practice. This study aimed to assess students’ knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) regarding Black Fungus amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out among Bangladeshi students from June to July 2021. Using Google Forms, an e-questionnaire was developed for this web-based survey, and the participants were selected through a snowball sampling approach. Results: Out of the 2009 participants, more than half were female (53.5%), and the majority were at an age between 18 and 25 years (31.5%) and had received higher secondary (HSC) schooling (77.8%), while around 61% resided in urban areas. Findings revealed that most of the students (63.8%) spent around 2 h on electronic and social media to become informed about COVID-19 and Black Fungus. Approximately 33% of the students showed low KAP scores (32.9%), whereas around 26% had high KAP scores. Our results show a significant association between KAP and sex, schooling, living status, residence, and media exposure. Conclusion: The knowledge of Black Fungus considerably varies among Bangladeshi students considering the place of residence, age, sex, living arrangement, and media exposure. Policymakers should emphasize awareness among people focusing on the results of this study to increase deterrent attitudes and protective practices to minimize the risks of being infected.

Keywords: Black Fungus; KAP analysis; COVID-19; students; Bangladesh (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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