Table 5.
Participants’ perception about sickle cell disease and relationship choices stratified per age and sex for an exploratory study at University of Cape Coast from 2nd February to 22nd December 2022
| Total | Sex | P-value | Age (years) | P-value | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Female | Male | 15–19 | 20–29 | 30–39 | ≥40 | ||||
| I will insist on screening for sickle cell condition before committing to a long-term relationship | 0.152 | 0.086 | |||||||
| Disagree | 28 (7.3) | 15 (8.0) | 13 (6.6) | 4 (12.9) | 22 (7.4) | 1 (1.9) | 1 (14.3) | ||
| Uncertain | 21 (5.4) | 6 (3.2) | 15 (7.6) | 0 (0.0) | 21 (7.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 337 (87.3) | 167 (88.8) | 170 (85.9) | 27 (87.1) | 253 (85.5) | 51 (98.1) | 6 (85.7) | ||
| Sickle cell condition testing is not a priority for me when it comes to marriage | 0.304 | 0.164 | |||||||
| Disagree | 294 (76.2) | 143 (76.1) | 151 (76.3) | 23 (74.2) | 228 (77.0) | 37 (71.2) | 6 (85.7) | ||
| Uncertain | 36 (9.3) | 14 (7.4) | 22 (11.1) | 2 (6.5) | 32 (10.8) | 2 (3.8) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 56 (14.5) | 31 (16.5) | 25 (12.6) | 6 (19.4) | 36 (12.2) | 13 (25.0) | 1 (14.3) | ||
| I will not be happy if sickle cell screening is mandatory in pre-marital counseling | 0.200 | 0.652 | |||||||
| Disagree | 282 (73.1) | 145 (77.1) | 137 (69.2) | 21 (67.7) | 216 (73.0) | 40 (76.9) | 5 (71.4) | ||
| Uncertain | 36 (9.3) | 14 (7.4) | 22 (11.1) | 2 (6.5) | 28 (9.5) | 6 (11.5) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 68 (17.6) | 29 (15.4) | 39 (19.7) | 8 (25.8) | 52 (17.6) | 6 (11.5) | 2 (28.6) | ||
| I would advise would-be couples to screen for sickle cell condition before marriage | 0.420 | 0.551 | |||||||
| Disagree | 27 (7.0) | 15 (8.0) | 12 (6.1) | 2 (6.5) | 22 (3.8) | 2 (3.8) | 1 (14.3) | ||
| Uncertain | 17 (4.4) | 6 (3.2) | 11 (5.6) | 2 (6.5) | 15 (5.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 342 (88.6) | 167 (88.8) | 175 (88.4) | 27 (87.1) | 259 (87.5) | 50 (96.2) | 6 (85.7) | ||
| Having a sickle cell condition should not deter me from marrying another person with sickle cell condition | 0.143 | 0.190 | |||||||
| Disagree | 232 (60.1) | 120 (63.8) | 112 (56.6) | 18 (58.1) | 170 (57.4) | 37 (71.2) | 7 (100.0) | ||
| Uncertain | 75 (19.4) | 29 (15.4) | 46 (23.2) | 7 (22.6) | 62 (20.9) | 6 (11.5) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 79 (20.5) | 39 (20.7) | 40 (20.2) | 6 (19.6) | 64 (21.6) | 9 (17.3) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Having sickle cell disease is a matter of fate and should not be a consideration in choosing a spouse | 0.081 | 0.433 | |||||||
| Disagree | 263 (68.1) | 132 (70.2) | 131 (66.2) | 21 (67.7) | 203 (68.6) | 33 (63.5) | 6 (85.7) | ||
| Uncertain | 52 (13.5) | 18 (9.6) | 34 (17.2) | 2 (6.5) | 44 (14.9) | 6 (11.5) | 0 (0.0) | ||
| Agree | 71 (18.4) | 38 (20.2) | 33 (16.7) | 8 (25.8) | 49 (16.6) | 13 (25.0) | 1 (14.3) | ||
The data is presented as frequencies n (%) with statistical significance at p < 0.05 determined using chi-square test