Awareness Level of Hepatitis B and C among Undergraduate Students of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (Atbu), Bauchi

Liver is one of the integral organs in human body. Hepatitis B and C are ranked high amongst killer diseases in the world and Nigeria is said to have large number of people unknowingly living with these viruses. One of the outstanding factors is the poor knowledge of hepatitis B and C amongst the general population including students. This study aimed at assessing knowledge of undergraduate students of ATBU, Bauchi regarding viral hepatitis B and C. This was a questionnaire-based study conducted among students in ATBU, Bauchi using pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. A total of 387 students were enlisted in the study. The tools used for data analysis were frequency distribution, Chi-square tests and odd ratio. Statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 25, R and Microsoft excel 2016 were used for data analysis. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. It was observed that 86.8% ATBU students have good knowledge of viral Hepatitis B and C sadly, 51 students representing 13.2% have never heard about viral hepatitis. It was also discovered that their knowledge about hepatitis B and C do not depend on the demographic variables, considered in the study. 54.5% students did not know their hepatitis B and C status. 69.8% students have inadequate knowledge about the modes of spreads of viral hepatitis B and C. Findings from this study revealed that ATBU students demonstrated high level of awareness of HBV and HCV infections. Thus, 54.5% participants did not know their status. Students who are well informed about hepatitis B and C were 2 times more likely to know their hepatitis B and C status compared to those with poor or no knowledge. And that, majority of ATBU students have inadequate knowledge about modes of spread of the viruses hence, an urgent need for action.