ABSTRACT
Background: Tinea capitis is a superficial fungal disease that is prevalent in Nigeria. Its prevalence and spread has been attributed to different factors. Also, Tinea capitis is unsightly and could have both psychosocial and psychological impacts on the pupil including depression, psychiatric hospitalization, suicide attempts, social anxiety and isolation. These impacts affects the social relation and psychological development of the affected children. Despite the prevalence and impact of this disease among the children, most parents and caregiver do not seek medical assistance. Objective: To assess the prevalence, health seeking behavior and psychological impact of tinea capitis among primary school children in Benin City. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study. The study population comprised pupils attending two private primary schools in Benin City. The schools were selected using multi-stage sampling technique and respondents were selected via stratified sampling method. Data was collected using structured interviewer-administered questionnaire adapted from the Children’s Dermatology Life Quality Index and diagnosis was made clinically using distinguishing features of tinea capitis. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25.0 and level of statistical significance was set at 0.05. Results of data analysis were presented using tables, charts and prose. Results: Six hundred and ten respondents participated in the study. A greater proportion, 353 (57.9%) of the respondents were within the ages of 8 to 10 with a mean age and S.D of 8.56 ± 1.79. A higher proportion, 324 (53.1%) of the respondents were male and 165 (27.9%) respondents were in primary 5. Adequate clinical diagnosis revealed that 45 (7.4%) of the respondents had tinea capitis. Bivariate analysis revealed that respondents in primary four had xv the highest 15 (12.5%) number of pupils with Tinea capitis. This was followed by primary three, 12 (12.2%), primary two, 9 (12.2%), primary one, 2 (6.3%) and primary five, 6 (3.6%). However there was no statistically significant association between prevalence and class (p = 0.919). Also, no significant predictors of prevalence were observed on binary logistic regression (p = 0.396). Majority, 40 (88.9%) of the children who had tinea capitis had good health seeking behavior. Bivariate analysis on health seeking behavior showed that respondents in primary five, 3 (50.0%) had poor health seeking behavior compared to the other classes, however there was no significant association between health seeking behaviour and class (p = 0.042). There were also no significant predictors of health seeking behavior (p = 0.370). Majority, 41 (91.2%) of the respondents who had tinea capitis had good CDLQI score, while 2 (4.4%) had poor CDLQI score. More children aged 8 to 10 years had poor CDLQI scores compared to other age groups. There was a significant association between CDQLI and age (p = 0.029) . Conclusion: The prevalence of tinea capitis among the respondents was low. Majority of the respondents who had tinea capitis had good health seeking behavior. A factor noted to affect the health seeking behavior was the class of the affected individual as pupils in lower classes had better health seeking behavior compared to those in higher classes. Tinea capitis has a psychological impact on the daily life of the pupils as majority of the respondents with tinea capitis experienced psychological impact as evidenced by their good Children’s Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) scores. Government should improve the coverage of primary health care facilities which would serve as first point of call for seeking healthcare and schools should ensure regular inspection of pupils to identify those who may have tinea capitis so that they can receive treatment.
