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Several factors are known to influence vaccination rates, including perceptions of disease severity and susceptibility, views on vaccine safety and effectiveness, and real and perceived barriers such as cost and availability.
In the United States, MPOX is most commonly diagnosed in men who have sex with men (MSM), although the disease is not exclusive to this population.
During the most recent epidemic, 23-28% of MSM in the United States were vaccinated with MPOX, resulting in over 30,000 diagnoses of MPOX. Researchers have investigated how these factors and sexual risk taking relate to MPOX acceptance and intention among MSM in the United States. However, few studies have examined how these factors affect actual MPOX vaccination uptake among MSM.
A study published in the journal Health Behavior Research aims to fill this gap by examining vaccinated and unvaccinated MSM using a health belief model approach. The study used data from a survey of more than 500 MSM in the United States conducted in August 2022 by Dr. Christopher Owens, assistant professor in the Department of Health Behavior at the Texas A&M University School of Public Health, and Dr. Randolph Heubach of Purdue University.
“In contrast to previous studies, we found that the perceived risk of contracting MPOX or the perceived severity of the disease was not associated with vaccination rates,” Owens said. “However, we also found that the cost of the MPOX vaccine and perceptions of the difficulty of administering it were significant barriers to uptake.”
Owens noted that these two key beliefs could highlight high demand, supply issues and limited access to the vaccine due to eligibility restrictions, which may have also played a major role in the low vaccination rates.
The researchers also found that respondents who reported sexually risky behaviors were more likely to have been vaccinated, which is consistent with previous studies of vaccine acceptance and intentions.
“Public information campaigns about the risks of disease and the benefits of vaccination are important, but we should also address perceived and actual barriers to vaccination, such as letting people know where they can get the vaccine and what options are available to reduce costs,” Owens said.
“Our findings will help design essential health campaigns for future infectious disease outbreaks that may be transmitted by close contact.”
Further information: Christopher Owens et al., “Health Belief Model, Demographic, and Sexual Behavioral Factors Associated with Mpox Vaccination among Men Who Have Sex with Men,” Health Behavior Research (2024). DOI: 10.4148/2572-1836.1210
Provided by Texas A&M University
Citation: Study finds cost and perceived difficulty are reasons why men refrain from getting MPOX vaccine (September 26, 2024) Retrieved September 26, 2024 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-09-reveals-difficulty-men-mpox-vaccine.html
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