Knowledge and concern about avian influenza among secondary school students in Taif, Saudi Arabia

This study identified knowledge and concerns about avian influenza among secondary school students in Taif, Saudi Arabia. A stratified random sample of 514 students from 6 secondary schools was given a self-administered multiple-choice questionnaire. Knowledge scores were significantly related to socioeconomic indicators. Approximately 70% of the participants reported that media (TV and/or radio) was the source of their information. Overall, 65.4% of the participants said they expected there to be cases of avian influenza in Saudi Arabia this year. Females were more concerned than males (70.9% versus 58.9%). Effective school health education programmes should be implemented in order to prepare the community to deal with this important threat.