Public knowledge of cardiovascular disease and its risk factors in Kuwait: a cross-sectional survey

Abstract

BackgroundCardiovascular disease (CVD) is estimated to cause 46% of all mortalities in Kuwait. To design effective primary and secondary prevention programs, an assessment of a population’s prior CVD knowledge is of paramount importance. There is scarcity of data on the existing CVD knowledge among the general Kuwaiti population. Hence, this study was performed to assess the level of knowledge towards CVD types, warning symptoms of heart attack or stroke, and CVD risk factors. It also explored public views on the community pharmacists’ role in CVD prevention and management.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional survey was performed using a pretested self-administered questionnaire on a sample of 900 randomly selected Kuwaiti individuals. Descriptive and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used in data analysis.ResultsThe response rate was 90.7%. Respondents’ knowledge about types of CVD, heart attack or stroke symptoms was low. Almost 60% of respondents did not know any type of CVD, and coronary heart disease was the commonest identified type (29.0%). Two-fifths of participants were not aware of any heart attack symptoms, and the most commonly known were chest pain (50.4%) and shortness of breath (48.0%). Approximately half of respondents did not recognize any stroke symptoms, and the most commonly recognized were ‘confusion or trouble speaking’ (36.4%) and ‘numbness or weakness’ (34.7%). Respondents’ knowledge regarding CVD risk factors was moderate. The commonest factors identified by over four-fifths of participants were smoking, obesity, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, independent predictors of better level of CVD knowledge were females, age 50–59 years, high level of education, regular eating of healthy diet, and had a family history of CVD. Most of respondents only identified the role that pharmacists had to play is to help patients manage their medications, with a minimal role in other aspects of CVD prevention and management.ConclusionsThere are deficiencies in CVD knowledge among Kuwaiti population, which could turn into insufficient preventative behaviours and suboptimal patient outcomes. There is an apparent need to establish more wide-spread and effective educational interventions, which should be sensitive to the perceptions, attitudes, and abilities of targeted individuals.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-1131) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Effectiveness of therapeutic education in patients with myocardial infarction

“…Our analysis of patients' knowledge of the coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, and prevention, like numerous other reports [6, 9-11, 15, 16], did not reveal significant differences in this regard between men and women, although some researchers claim such a difference does exist [17]. This, however, does not signify that the knowledge of women and men are at equal levels.…”

Knowledge of Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors among a Community Sample in Oman: Pilot study

“…7,25 A study conducted in Kuwait to assess public knowledge of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors reported similar findings, while another conducted in Jordan reported higher levels of knowledge among their cohort. 15,16 Smoking, high blood pressure and high cholesterol have been rated as factors posing the greatest risk for CHD. 8 Pereira et al reported that the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of these risk factors in developing countries are coming closer to those in developed countries.…”

“…[15][16][17] Recent studies in this region have focused on screening for obesity, dietary patterns and diabetes mellitus. [18][19][20] There is therefore an urgent need to understand baseline knowledge levels of CHD among the Omani population before designing appropriate and effective interventions to promote awareness.…”

Educational Role of Nurses to Patients who have Experienced an Acut Cardiac Event: A Pilot Study in Albania

“…Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the most preventable causes of death in the world, due to the fact that the majority of its risk factors are preventable or controllable, such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, obesity, smoking, lack of physical activity, stress, unhealthy dietary practices and diabetes [4,5] .…”

“…Patient education is key in order to detecting changes in body weight or clinical status early enough to allow the patient or a healthcare provider an opportunity to institute treatments that can prevent clinical deterioration in those patients [5,6] . The main goal of cardiac rehabilitation is to prompt patients participate in their therapeutic treatment regimen to such an extent that they can achieve living almost a normal life.…”