Jebmh.com Original Article J. Evid. Based Med. Healthc., pISSN- 2349-2562, eISSN- 2349-2570/ Vol. 3/Issue 25/Mar. 28, 2016 Page 1140 AWARENESS OF TUBERCULOSIS AMONG HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS OF A TOWN IN COASTAL ANDHRA PRADESH Sai Shankar Prathap 1 , Anand Acharya 2 1 Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Konaseema Institute of Medical Sciences & Research Foundation, Amalapuram. 2 Professor & HOD, Department of Pharmacology, Konaseema Institute of Medical Sciences & Research Foundation, Amalapuram. ABSTRACT BACKGROUND Tuberculosis is an age old disease which has remained as a major global public health problem with socioeconomic implications in developing countries. The interaction with HIV/AIDS and emergence of drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis bacilli has worsened the situation. India has a high burden of tuberculosis in terms of incidence, prevalence and mortality. RNTCP in India follows a passive case detection method for case finding in chest symptomatics. This makes it essential for the community at large and the younger generation in particular to have adequate knowledge and awareness regarding tuberculosis since it is highly infectious. High school children can be effectively sensitised and motivated to be change agents in the community and play a key role in combating tuberculosis. AIM To assess the awareness levels of 8 th to 10 th grade school students in Amalapuram, a town in coastal area of Andhra Pradesh regarding tuberculosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS After the study protocol was cleared by the Institutional Ethics Committee of Konaseema Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Foundation, Amalapuram, permission was sought from the authorities of five private schools and one government school in Amalapuram to carry out this study among the 8 th to 10 th grade students of these schools. A predesigned, pretested semi-structured questionnaire was used to capture information related to basic demographic details of the participants followed by questions related tuberculosis to assess their awareness. A cross-sectional survey was carried out and once the filled-in questionnaires were collected, an interactive session was held where various aspects of tuberculosis were elaborately explained, the answers to the questions were told in detail and doubts of the students were clarified. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS The data collected was entered into a template created in computer using Microsoft Excel 2007. EPI INFO 6 software was used for statistical analysis. Chi Square test was done wherever applicable. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS Total 581 out of 728 students (79.81%) participated consisting of 267 females and 314 males. The awareness levels of the study group are suboptimal for various aspects of tuberculosis such as epidemiology, symptoms, diagnostic tests, treatment as well as vaccine preventable nature of the disease. The knowledge gap has to be bridged through effective health education and communication to the community in general and the high school students in particular who can play a key role in combating tuberculosis. KEYWORDS Tuberculosis, Awareness, Knowledge, High school students. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Prathap SS, Acharya A. Awareness of tuberculosis among high school students of a town in coastal Andhra Pradesh. J. Evid. Based Med. Healthc. 2016; 3(25), 1140-1144. DOI: 10.18410/jebmh/2016/262 INTRODUCTION: Tuberculosis is an age old disease which has remained as a major global public health problem with socioeconomic implications in developing countries. The problem has compounded with the advent of HIV/AIDS. The emergence of drug-resistant strains of the tuberculosis bacillus has worsened the situation. One-fourth of the global incident tuberculosis cases occur in India annually. As per WHO estimates the incidence and prevalence of tuberculosis in India is 171 and 211 per lakh persons respectively and mortality is 19 per lakh persons in 2013. 1 WHO’s Stop TB strategy also emphasises on education and empowerment of communities. RNTCP in India follows a passive case detection method for case finding in chest symptomatics. This makes it essential for the community at large and the younger generation in particular to have adequate knowledge and awareness regarding tuberculosis since it is highly infectious. Submission 18-03-2016, Peer Review 24-03-2016, Acceptance 26-03-2016, Published 28-03-2016. Corresponding Author: Dr. Sai Shankar Prathap, Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Konaseema Institute of Medical Sciences & Research Foundation, Amalapuram, East Godavari-533201, Andhra Pradesh. E-mail: prathapss@gmail.com DOI: 10.18410/jebmh/2016/262