Prevalence, Perception and Awareness of Chronic Diseases (HIV, Diabetes, Hypertension and Typhoid Fever) Among Rural Dwellers in Nomeh-Unateze Community in Nkanu-East LGA of Enugu
Authors: Micheal Nissi Chiemerie Ani Celestine Okafor , Anikpo Eberechukwu Florentina Nweke Luke Maduka , Ejim Nnamdi Ferdinand Ugwuagbo Valentine , Sunday Onah Emmanuel 
Published: August 2024

Introduction: This study investigated the prevalence, perception, and awareness of chronic diseases—HIV, Diabetes, Hypertension, and Typhoid Fever—among rural dwellers in Nomeh-Unateze Community, located in Nkanu-East Local Government Area of Enugu. Methodology: A total of 200 participants were evaluated for this study. The mean age (standard deviation) of the participants was 48.9years (12.25) and 47% of the participants were within the age range of 55 and above. 83% of the participants were females while 17% were males. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, data was collected through structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews and tests for these chronic diseases. Results: Out of the study participants, only 4% had tertiary education, 17% started secondary school, 49% had basic education and 30% had no formal education. There was a high level of awareness of the chronic diseases, HIV, Diabetes Mellitus, Hypertension and Typhoid fever; however, the high rate of low level education had a huge impact on their perception about them. A significant gap in the sources of information about these chronic diseases was also found. Only 15% of participants reported receiving information from healthcare personnel, while 30% relied on media sources, predominantly radio. Misconceptions about disease causation and prevention were also prevalent, particularly regarding HIV as a high level of stigma surrounding HIV was also observed. The findings from this study revealed that the prevalence rates of these chronic diseases are notably low among the study participants, with HIV having a prevalence of 0.0% among the study participants. Diabetes had a1.15% prevalence among the study participants and the only identified incidences were recorded in females within the age range of 35-44. Typhoid had a prevalence of 1.05% among the participants, and the only incidences were recorded in males. However, Hypertension had the highest prevalence; 32.5% for hypertensive SBP (outside the safe range of 100-140mmHg) and 27.5% for hypertensive Diastolic Blood Pressure (DBP) (outside the safe range of 60-90mmHg). All cases of hypertension were recorded in participants above 45years of age. This study underscores the urgent need for targeted health education interventions and improved access to healthcare services to enhance disease management and reduce the burden of chronic diseases in rural communities. Conclusion: Therefore, the study recommend that more research-oriented medical outreaches should be organized to both evaluate the level of stigmatization and fear associated with these chronic diseases and aim at drastically reducing them. Future researches should involve longitudinal studies that will check for the changes in the trends of the prevalence rates of these diseases over time, as well as their mortality rates. The community.