TABLE 3.
Knowledge of heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) among study participants and evolution of this knowledge between the first and second surveys
| Question [correct answer] | Survey 1 | Survey 2 | p‐Value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Have you ever heard about heartworm disease before? | 72 (98.6%) | 38 (100%) | ‐ | |||
| How do you know about heartworm? | ||||||
| I have/had an animal who was diagnosed with heartworm | 5 (6.8%) | 2 (5.3%) | ||||
| I know somebody whose animal was diagnosed with heartworm | 18 (24.7%) | 14 (36.8%) | ||||
| I have/had an animal and the veterinarian educated me about heartworm | 28 (38.4%) | 26 (68.4%) | ||||
| I worked in a veterinarian clinic | 61 (83.4%) | 31 (81.6%) | ||||
| General (TV, …) | 2 (2.7%) | 1 (2.6%) | ||||
| Do you know the scientific name of the agent? (Yes) | 9 (12.3%) | 33 (86.8%) | <0.001 a | |||
| What is it? [Dirofilaria immitis] | 6 (8.2%) | 20 (52.6%) | <0.001 a | |||
| Do you know which type of agent it is? (multiple choice) [Parasite] | 60 b (83.3%) | 38 (100%) | – | |||
| What is the main animal infected by this agent? [Dog/Canine] | 65 (89.0%) | 37 (97.4%) | ||||
| Does the agent infect other animals? (Yes) | 53 (72.6%) | 37 (97.4%) | – | |||
| Cat listed (in main or second) | 40 (54.8%) | 38 (100%) | – | |||
| Can the agent infect humans? | 14 (19.2%) | 7 b (18.9%) | 1 a | |||
| How is the agent transmitted? | 0.004 a | |||||
| Direct contact | 2 (1.4%) | 0 | ||||
| Indirect contact (via environment) | 11 (15.1%) | 0 | ||||
| By an animal vector | 49 (67.1%) | 37 (97.4%) | ||||
| Don't know or answered several categories | 11 (15.1%) | 1 (2.6%) | ||||
| Can you describe the transmission? | <0.001 c | |||||
| 0 | 31 (42.5%) | 1 (2.6%) | ||||
| 1 | 33 (45.2%) | 18 (47.4%) | ||||
| 2 | 9 (12.3%) | 12 (31.6%) | ||||
| 3 | 0 | 7 (18.4%) | ||||
| Can you describe the clinical signs? | <0.001 c | |||||
| 0 | 31 (42.5%) | 0 | ||||
| 1 | 14 (19.2%) | 7 (18.4%) | ||||
| 2 | 19 (26.0%) | 17 (44.7%) | ||||
| 3 | 9 (12.3%) | 14 (36.8%) | ||||
| Can you describe the method to prevent heartworm? | 0.03 c | |||||
| 0 | 5 (6.8%) | 2 (5.3%) | ||||
| 1 | 30 (41.1%) | 7 (18.4%) | ||||
| 2 | 29 (39.7%) | 25 (65.8%) | ||||
| 3 | 9 (12.3%) | 4 (10.5%) | ||||
| How often should the prevention be given to dogs? | 0.2 a | |||||
| Daily | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Weekly | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Monthly | 63 (87.5%) | 37 (97.4%) | ||||
| Every 2 months | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Every 6 months | 7 (9.6%) | 1 (2.6%) | ||||
| No opinion | 2 b (2.7%) | 0 | ||||
| How often should the prevention be given to cats? | 0.001 a | |||||
| Daily | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Weekly | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Monthly | 43 (58.9%) | 33 (86.8%) | ||||
| Every 2 months | 2 (2.7%) | 0 | ||||
| Every 6 months | 0 | 1 (2.6%) | ||||
| No opinion | 28 (38.4%) | 4 (10.5%) | ||||
a
Comparison is performed by McNemar test.
b
One missing value.
c
Comparison is performed by paired Wilcoxon signed‐rank test.