What do deaf high school students know about HIV?

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Adolescent Health
• Sign Language Communication

Background:

• Deaf adolescents using American Sign Language (ASL) are vulnerable to HIV, similar to hearing peers.
• Traditional HIV information sources are inaccessible to ASL-dependent deaf adolescents.
• Limited data exists on HIV knowledge and risk behaviors within this demographic.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and administer a comprehensive HIV knowledge and risk survey specifically for deaf adolescents.
• To assess the current level of HIV knowledge among deaf adolescents using ASL.
• To identify factors associated with HIV knowledge in this population.

Main Methods:

• A survey was developed and administered using laptop computers in American Sign Language (ASL).
• The study included 700 deaf adolescent participants from high schools across the United States.
• A reliable knowledge scale (Cronbach's α = .83) with 14 items was used to assess HIV knowledge.

Main Results:

• Participants answered approximately half of the 14 HIV knowledge items correctly (mean = 7.2, median = 7.0).
• Multivariable analysis indicated a strong correlation between HIV knowledge scores and receiving information in school.
• Significant gaps in HIV knowledge were identified among the surveyed deaf adolescents.

Conclusions:

• Deaf adolescents demonstrate a need for improved HIV knowledge.
• School-based HIV education is a critical factor in enhancing knowledge for deaf adolescents.
• Linguistically and culturally appropriate HIV prevention education in schools is essential for this population.