Sickle cell trait, knowledge, attitudes, practices and perceptions regarding sickle cell disease among people living in Yaoundé, Cameroon

Sickle cell disease is the most common autosomal recessive disease in sub-Saharan Africa. Our study aimed to determine the sickle cell trait, to assess knowledge, attitudes, practices and perceptions regarding sickle cell disease of people living in Yaoundé. We carried out a cross-sectional and descriptive study at the Institute of Medical Research and Medicinal Plants studies in Yaoundé. We included a total of 191 participants of mixed sex and ages ranging from 10 to 70 years old, able to complete a questionnaire and having accepted a blood sample for the hemoglobin electrophoresis test. Data was collected using a questionnaire. We used the Chi-square test to assess the relationships between variables with p-value ˂ 0.05 for meaningful relationships. More than half of the participants were women (59.16%), and the representative age group was 20-29 years old (47.12%). The highest level of education was university level (71.73%). Most of the participants had heard of sickle cell disease (93.72%) and the most talked-about information channel was television (41.90%). The proportions in relation to knowledge about sickle cell disease were as follows: in the transmission mode, 71.73% had mentioned that it is an inherited disease; in prevention mode, 88.08% had mentioned the hemoglobin electrophoresis test. For the follow-up of the disease, 85.86% noted the hospital as the location. Compared to marriage with a sickle cell disease patient, 68.59% answered negatively. There is a significant relationship (p˂0.05) between the level of education and knowledge of sickle cell disease transmission. The results of our study showed that the university population of Yaoundé had a good knowledge of sickle cell disease. Young people are called upon to be tested for sickle cell disease before marriage. Studies on larger samples should be conducted to have a better appreciation of the sickle cell trait in the population of Yaoundé. Keywords: Sickle cell trait, knowledge, attitudes, practices, sickle cell disease, Center Region, Yaoundé Cameroon.