• Mona Al Sairafi and Farida A Mohamed.
• Mishref Clinic, Hawalli Health District, Mishref, Kuwait. dr_manaalsaiyrafi@yahoo.com
• Med Princ Pract. 2009 Jan 1; 18 (1): 354235-42.

ObjectivesTo assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding cervical cancer screening among Kuwaiti women.Subjects And MethodsA total of 300 married Kuwaiti women were randomly selected from those who visited the clinics irrespective of reason(s) for the visit. A structured questionnaire covering sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge, attitude, and practice related to cervical cancer screening was administered.ResultsOf the 300 women, complete information was collected from 281 (93.7%), the knowledge about the test was adequate in 147 (52.3%) women, while 86 (30.6%) had adequate attitude towards the test and only 67 (23.8%) had an adequate practice. The main reason given for not having had a Papanicolaou smear was that it was not suggested by the doctor. Among all the respondents 220 (78.7%) would prefer a female doctor to conduct the test. The level of education was the only significant factor independently associated with inadequate knowledge and attitude towards Papanicolaou smear test (p = 0.006 and p = 0.001, respectively) when adjusted for the effect of other factors in multivariate logistic regression analysis. However, age (p < 0.001), level of education (p = 0.028), and number of years since last visit with a gynaecologist (p = 0.005) were significant factors independently associated with inadequate practice of the test.ConclusionOur findings showed that a well-designed health education programme on cervical cancer and benefits of screening would increase the awareness among Kuwaiti women.Copyright 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

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