Awareness of gestational diabetes mellitus among females in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to assess the awareness about gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) among married females in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done on all women in reproductive age and an electronic questionnaire was used. Data about participants’ demographics, parity, BMI, pregnancy, family and personal history of chronic diseases, gestational diabetes were collected. Their knowledge about effect of gestational diabetes on mother and on neonatal outcomes and their source of information about GDM were assessed. Results: The mean age of the participants was 37.99 ± 9.44 years and 77.8% of them had poor knowledge about GDM and 6.1% had good knowledge. Multipara women with a university education had a significantly higher mean knowledge level and the most common source of participants’ knowledge about GDM was social media. Conclusion: Females’ knowledge about GDM was significantly low in Jeddah. Health education campaigns and mass media education are urgent to increase their awareness about GDM. Health care practitioners should focus on popularizing GDM and raising awareness of its consequences.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Patients with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Regarding Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: A Cross-Sectional Study

“… 29 In contrast, previous reports have tended to find that a higher BMI was either associated with better knowledge of GDM 18 or was without significant influence. 30 It is possible that the women in the present study who had a lower BMI were those who made greater efforts to control their weight because they were more aware of the risks of overweight/obesity to the mother and fetus. Given the knowledge gaps identified by our survey, we suggest that the implementation of educational interventions during early pregnancy may help women with GDM to better understand the nature of their condition, the risks associated with it and the importance of adhering to self-management strategies to reduce the risks.…”

Knowledge of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Among Adult Females in Al Qassim Province, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…In the Al-Khobar study, 64.8% of participants were aware of gestational diabetes and mentioned that, overall, the primary source of information was friends and relatives [ 15 ]. In contrast, the most common source of knowledge about gestational diabetes observed in the Jeddah study was social media (30.5%) [ 9 ]. Approximately 14.4% received information from healthcare providers, a lower percentage than reported in another study in Sharjah [ 21 ].…”

Awareness of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Among Women in the Al-Baha Region, Saudi Arabia

“…Another study surpassed the current findings. Based on the study outcomes, 77.8% of women in Jeddah reported poor knowledge, and only 6.1% understood GDM properly [ 18 ]. Additionally, 93.69% of participants reported poor awareness of GDM [ 19 ].…”