Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices About Zoonotic Diseases in Livestock Producers From Three Municipalities of Magdalena Medio, Antioquia

Background: Zoonotic diseases related to cattle farming cause a significant sanitary and economic impact in Colombia. Poor knowledge, negative attitudes, and few practices related to their transmission, prevention, and control aggravate the epidemiological profile of these diseases. Objective: To analyze the profile of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) related to zoonotic diseases in livestock producers from three municipalities of Magdalena Medio de Antioquia. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 143 randomly selected livestock producers who participated voluntarily. A reproducible and valid survey was applied to estimate KAP scores; the description was made with frequencies and summary measures. The factors associated with KAP were determined with nonparametric tests. Potential explanatory factors were identified with multivariate linear regressions. Results: Most of the subjects were young men from rural areas with middle socioeconomic status, married, employed in general farm maintenance, and with low formal education. The main factors associated with the KAP profile were area of residence, gender, marital status, age, and time working in the activity. Knowledge about vectors of infectious agents was deficient in relation to the attitudes domain. It was found that they receive little information, and in the evaluation of practices, they are at high risk concerning the lack of protective equipment and consumption of untreated water and raw food. Conclusions: Education in the promotion and maintenance of health, as well as veterinary supervision in the livestock production setting, are central factors for preventing zoonotic diseases. This study generates a valid scale for monitoring and research associated with cattle farming.