Knowledge and Attitude Toward Human Papillomavirus and HPV Vaccination in Iranian Population: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background and objective: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the main cause of cervical cancer. This systematic review was performed to provide an overview of knowledge and attitude about HPV infection and HPV vaccine in Iranian population. Materials and Methods: The information was identified by searching international and national databases; pubmed/MEDLINE (NCBI), Embase (Elsevier), Google Scholar, Scientific Information Database, MagIran, and IranDoc. The current research was performed using the terms of medical subject headings (MeSH) and combinations of the keywords including: "human papillomavirus" or "human papillomavirus vaccine" with the words "knowledge," "awareness," "attitude" and "Iran." Studies were evaluated according to the checklist of STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE). Results: A total of 10 observational studies that met the inclusion criteria were included in this review. The overall knowledge and awareness of the Iranian population (parents, women, university students, medical students, nurses and hospital staff) about HPV and HPV vaccination was low; however, the attitude toward this issue was positive and strong. Conclusion: Due to the low levels of knowledge about HPV infection and its methods of prevention, efforts should be increased to enhance the knowledge of the general population about HPV infection and vaccination in order to prevent its incidence and complications.