Assessment of Knowledge and Fear of Scabies in a Saudi Population

Figures & data

Table 1 Demographic Data of the Respondents

Variables		Frequency	Percentage (%)
Gender	Male	691	18.3
	Female	3087	81.7
Residence	Urban area	3509	92.9
	Rural area	269	7.1
I have heard about scabies disease before	Yes	3487	92.3
Affected family member with Scabies	Yes	360	9.5
Age (years)	15–30	2146	56.8
	31–45	1112	29.4
	46–60	468	12.4
	>60	52	1.4
Educational level	Illiterate	47	1.2
	Elementary school	48	1.3
	Intermediate school	180	4.8
	High student	761	20.1
	Bachelor’s degree	2567	67.9
	Master’s degree	114	3
	Ph.D.	61	1.6
Occupational field	General educational sector	1803	47.7
	Medical sector	958	25.4
	Commercial sector	252	6.7
	Military sector	152	4
	Unemployed	316	16.2

Table 2 The Level of Knowledge Questionnaire with All Answers

Question About knowledge	Choices	Frequency	Percentage (%)
1-Have you ever heard about scabies disease?	*Yes	3487	92.3
	No	291	7.7
2-What is its cause (etiology)?	*Sarcoptesscabiei	2883	76.3
	Germs	817	21.7
	Scratching	77	2
3-What are its signs and symptoms?	*Small to large spots which are reddish and wet	835	22.1
	Itching at night and feeling hot	2856	75.6
	Pus containing vesicles	87	2.3
4-Which Parts of body are affected with scabies?	*Between fingers, armpits, waist, genitals, elbows, and wrists	2989	79.1
	Parts that are often being covered	691	18.3
	Mostly at the genital area	98	2.6
5- What is the mode of transmission of scabies disease?	*Skin to skin contact and through clothes, towels, bed linens, and Other things used by the patient	3331	88.2
	Through skin contact only	275	7.3
	Through clothes and bed linens only	172	4.6
6-Which age groups can be infected with scabies?	*All age groups but it is more common in teenagers	3102	82.1
	Teenagers only	130	3.4
	Certain age groups only	546	14.5
7- Is exchanging clothes with an infected person associated with increased transmission of scabies?	*Yes, it is	3337	88.3
	Only when the immunity is low	340	9
	No, it is not	101	2.7
8-Can scabies be harmful to the health of skin?	*Yes	3514	93
	No	264	7
9-Does the patient need to be quarantined?	*No, the patient just needs regular treatment	1515	40.1
	No, but persons should keep a distance from the patient	1030	27.3
	Yes, the patient needs to be quarantined	1233	32.6
10-What should we do to break the chain of scabies disease?	*Disinfection of clothing, bed linens and administration of treatment simultaneously	2932	77.6
	Keep a distance with others when being infected	601	15.9
	Regular treatment only	245	6.5
11-Does drying mattress and pillows prevent scabies transmission?	*Yes	3178	84.1
	No	600	15.9
12-How can scabies be prevented?	Bath 2 times per day with soap and avoid direct contact with the patients	1364	36.1
	Bath 2 times per day and keep the cleanliness of clothes	767	20.3
	*Keep clothes, towels and bed linens from being contaminated with scabies patients	1647	43.6

Note: *The correct answer.

Figure 1 Distribution of the respondents according to their knowledge level about scabies.

Table 3 Comparison of the Respondents According to Their the Level of Knowledge

		Good Knowledge		Moderate Knowledge		P value
		Frequency	Percentage (%)	Frequency	Percentage (%)
Number of the participants		3526	93.3	252	6.7	n/a
Gender	Male	616	17.5	75	29.8	<0.001
	Female	2910	82.5	177	70.2
Residence	Urban area	3299	93.6	210	83.3	<0.001
	Rural area	227	6.4	42	16.7
I have heard about scabies disease before		3329	94.4	158	62.7	<0.001
I have an affected family member with Scabies		291	8.3	69	27.4	<0.001
Age (years)	15–30	2037	57.8	109	43.3	<0.001
	31–45	1016	28.8	96	38.1
	46–60	432	12.2	36	14.2
	>60	41	1.2	11	4.4
Educational level	Illiterate	33	0.9	14	5.6	<0.001
	Elementary school	38	1.1	10	4.0
	Intermediate school	159	4.6	21	8.2
	High student	701	19.9	60	23.8
	Bachelor’s degree	2431	68.9	136	54.0
	Master’s degree	106	3.0	8	3.2
	Ph.D.	58	1.6	3	1.2
Occupational field	General educational sector	1714	48.6	89	35.3	<0.001
	Medical sector	921	26.2	37	14.7
	Commercial sector	220	6.2	32	12.7
	Military sector	124	3.5	28	11.1
	Unemployed	547	15.5	66	26.2

Table 4 Distribution of Respondents Based on the Fear of Scabies Scale

Fear of Scabies Scale-10 (FSS-10) Item* (Mean ±SD)	Mean ± SD
1-I am afraid of contracting scabies	37.2±5.6
2-I would feel ashamed if I had scabies	25.3±12.8
3-If I had scabies, I would feel that I want to hide this disease	33.4±10.1
4-I would avoid interaction with others if I had scabies	38.3±5.5
5-I would try to seek immediate medical help if I had scabies	25.4±12.6
6-Having scabies would greatly restrict my life	35.5±8.6
7-I would avoid public bathrooms, theaters and others public places where I may be infected with scabies	30.0±11.6
8-I will not afraid if I have scabies because all the treatment is available	34.8±8.9
9-If I knew someone has scabies, I would stay away from him	34.8±8.9
10-If I had scabies, I would let the others know	35.3±7.4
The total (FSS-10) weighted score mean	33±4.5

Note:*The Fear of Scabies Scale-10 was adapted from: Singg S. Scabies Awareness and Fear of Scabies Scale-10. J Clin Case Stud. 2016;1(1):9–10.31 Copyright: © 2015 Singg S. Creative Commons Attribution License.

Table 5 Comparison of the Respondents According to Their Fear Scabies Scale Score

		Greater Fear		Less Fear		P value
		Frequency	Percentage (%)	Frequency	Percentage (%)
Number of the participants		2201	58.3	1577	41.7	n/a
Gender	Male	432	19.6	259	16.4	<0.001
	Female	1769	80.4	1318	83.6
Residence	Urban area	2036	92.5	1473	93.4	0.159
	Rural area	165	7.5	104	6.6
I have heard about scabies disease before		2036	92.5	1451	92.1	0.308
I have an affected family member with Scabies		220	10	140	8.9	0.136
Age (years)	15–30	1301	59.1	845	53.6	<0.001
	31–45	614	27.9	498	31.6
	46–60	264	12	204	12.9
	>60	22	1	30	1.9
Educational level	Illiterate	20	0.9	27	1.7	<0.001
	Elementary school	25	1.1	23	1.5
	Intermediate school	90	4.1	90	5.7
	High student	449	20.4	312	19.8
	Bachelor’s degree	1521	69.1	1046	66.3
	Master’s degree	70	3.2	44	2.8
	Ph.D.	26	1.2	35	2.2
Occupational field	General educational sector	1091	49.6	712	45.1	<0.001
	Medical sector	625	28.4	333	21.1
	Commercial sector	140	6.4	112	7.1
	Military sector	85	3.9	67	4.2
	Unemployed	260	11.8	353	22.4