Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Japanese travelers towards malaria prevention during overseas travel

SummaryBackgroundThere has been some concern that Japanese travelers are not adequately protected against malaria, especially when compared to Western travelers. Multi-national studies of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding malaria risk have previously been conducted in travelers.MethodsWe conducted a KAP study in Japanese travelers using the same standardized questionnaire as the previous studies. Unlike those studies, questionnaires could not be distributed at departure lounges/gates at international airports, and therefore, travelers were sourced from several different study sites, targeting different populations.ResultsA total of 212 Japanese travelers who had visited malarious areas were enrolled, of which 63.2% had visited Asia and 28.3% visited sub-Saharan Africa. Significant shortcomings in KAP were noted with respect to lack of knowledge about symptoms of malaria, poor awareness of malaria risk at their destination, and non-adherence to adequate antimosquito measures. Chemoprophylaxis use was lower among Japanese travelers than travelers from other countries, even when confining to those traveling to sub-Saharan Africa.ConclusionsJapanese travel medicine providers and general practitioners who engage in pre-travel consultation should raise awareness of travelers about the seriousness of malaria, the need for improved compliance with chemoprophylaxis, and the importance of being properly prepared prior to departure.