Physician Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Viral Exanthem Diagnosis and Mandatory Reporting Requirements in Major Metropolitan Regions of Florida, USA

BackgroundViral exanthems (VEs), including vaccine-preventable infections such as measles and rubella and nonvaccine-preventable infections such as roseola, remain clinically relevant.Declining vaccination rates and recent outbreaks have increased the importance of timely diagnosis and mandatory reporting.In addition, the relative rarity of vaccine-preventable diseases in modern clinical practice may reduce physician familiarity with these infections. MethodsThis IRB-exempt cross-sectional study assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of Florida physicians regarding VE diagnosis and reporting requirements using a 19-question Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap; Vanderbilt University, Nashville, USA) survey.Participants included physicians and residents in family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine, and infectious disease specialties.Statistical analyses included analysis of variance (ANOVA), multivariate ANOVA (MANOVA), Tukey post hoc testing, and linear regression. ResultsA total of 162 physicians completed the survey, with 146 complete responses included in inferential analyses.Pediatricians demonstrated the highest overall knowledge scores (82.66%), followed by internal medicine (76.39%) and family medicine physicians (73.26%).Overall knowledge differences among specialties were significant (F(2,143) = 3.31, p = 0.039), with pediatricians scoring significantly higher than family medicine physicians.No significant specialty differences were identified when vignette-based diagnostic or mandatory reporting questions were analyzed independently.Most physicians, 148 (91.36%), expressed interest in additional training on VE diagnosis and management.Greater physician confidence was significantly associated with higher diagnostic knowledge (β = 10.73,p < 0.001) and reporting knowledge (β = 9.68, p < 0.001).Roseola was the most commonly diagnosed VE in clinical practice, followed by measles and rubella. ConclusionFlorida physicians demonstrated moderate-to-high knowledge of VE diagnosis and reporting requirements; however, notable gaps remained, particularly in differentiating rubella from similar exanthems.Interpretation is limited by the non-random respondent sample, uneven speciality representation, and potential nonresponse bias.Pediatricians outperformed family medicine physicians, although deficiencies were observed across specialties.These findings identify areas in which additional physician education may be beneficial, particularly regarding the clinical differentiation of viral exanthems and mandatory reporting requirements.As vaccination rates decline and outbreaks increase, improving early recognition and reporting of VE remains important for outbreak prevention and public health preparedness.