Abstract

Objectives: To assess the diabetic patient's knowledge about symptoms of hypoglycemia and the variables that may be associated with their knowledge.Methods: A cross-sectional study of 100 diabetic patients registered in Al-Hadher Primary Health Care Center (PHCC) and Al-Entifadha Public Clinic in Al- Daura region in Baghdad. The tool of data collection was a structured questionnaire. The parameters of the study were the knowledge about hypoglycemic symptoms measured as awareness of the patients regarding the symptoms of hypoglycemia and the proportions of patients with good and poor knowledge score.Results: The frequency of yes responses regarding the symptoms of hypoglycemia was ranged from 8-61% for different symptoms. Slightly less than the half of cases (49%) had a poor knowledge score. The only variable significantly associated with poor knowledge score was the education level (P=0.001). Lack of knowledge about the correct level of blood sugar to diagnose hypoglycemia found to be 50%. Conclusion: There is a need for health education as hypoglycemia causes severe morbidity and mortality and we suggest using different ways of communication as mass media, communication with health workers and curriculums.

The article was added to IASJ on 2012-05-27

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