Background: Leprosy or Morbus Hansen is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae that affects the skin and peripheral nerves and can spread through respiratory droplets or direct skin contact. Limited knowledge and improper preventive behavior in the community contribute to ongoing transmission.Objective: This study aimed to determine the level of knowledge and behavior of leprosy patients and to analyze their relationship with the prevention of leprosy transmission.Methods: This analytic correlation study used a cross-sectional design. The research was conducted in 2024 at Puskesmas Kalumata, Puskesmas Kota, and Puskesmas Siko using accidental sampling. A total of 62 respondents were included. Data were analyzed using univariate analysis, Fisher exact test for bivariate analysis, and ordinal logistic regression for multivariate analysis.Results: Most respondents were aged 20–60 years (77.4%), male (59.7%), had senior high school education (38.7%), were employed (72.6%), had low income (62.9%), and had close access to health services (88.7%). Good knowledge about leprosy was found in 71.0% of respondents, while good preventive behavior was found in 45.2%. Bivariate analysis showed a significant relationship between knowledge and prevention of leprosy transmission (p < 0.001), while behavior was not significantly related to prevention (p = 0.796). Multivariate analysis showed that knowledge was the most influential factor in preventing leprosy transmission (Wald = 21.409; p = 0.000).Conclusion: Knowledge significantly influences the prevention of leprosy transmission, indicating the importance of improving patient education and awareness to reduce disease spread.Keywords: Behavior; Knowledge; Leprosy; Prevention; Ternate.
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