Suchergebnisse

BACKGROUND: Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an inherited and complex multifactorial disease that can lead to early onset of coronary artery disease (CAD). Diagnosis, treatment, and management of FH require a well-trained physician with high awareness of the disease and different risk factors to avoid complications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study evaluated family physicians' awareness and knowledge of FH using self-administered questionnaires in governmental hospitals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during 2018. RESULTS: A total of 225 family physicians completed the questionnaire, with a response rate of 58.4%. The mean age of respondents was 31.3 years and more than 59.1% were men. Although 72.4% of physicians rated their familiarity with FH as average and above, 48.4% of all participants had poor FH knowledge, while only 51.6% had acceptable FH knowledge. About 65.8% of physicians reported that they routinely take a detailed family history, perform a physical examination, and screen close relatives. Awareness of various clinical algorithms for diagnosis of patients with FH was very low at 52.0%. The mean FH knowledge and familiarity scores were significantly higher (P < 0.001) among participants who were older, had higher training levels, or longer years in practice. CONCLUSIONS: The current study revealed significant deficits in FH familiarity, awareness, knowledge, and practice among Saudi physicians. FH educational programs directed at all physicians involved in FH patients' management are necessary to improve physicians' knowledge of all aspects of FH management, including the importance of a mechanism for identifying people at risk for a genetic condition by a process of systematic family tracing.

Background: Self-medication is a global phenomenon that is common in developing countries where people can buy prescription medicines without a physician's advice. Irresponsible self-medication may have an effect at the individual level as well as the community level. At the individual level, self-medication may cause potential health risks including wrong diagnosis, incorrect medication prescriptions, adverse events, failure to recognize pharmaceutical risks and contraindications, and prolonged use of drugs resulting in potential physical harm. At the community level, self-medication may promote drug-induced diseases, leading to wasteful public expenditure. Methodology: A substantial sample size of 2979 patients was collated from August 2016. The questionnaire was promulgated through electronic means to patients from all over Saudi Arabia. Informed consent was taken from all patients prior to the questions within the questionnaire. The privacy of the respondents was respected, and all data was analysed anonymously. Results: the majority of participants (74.4%) were young adults between the ages of 21 – 40. 81.4% of respondents had used a prescription drug without first obtaining a physician's advice. The drugs used without prescription were analgesics (84.1%), antipyretics (70.9%), antitussive syrups (46.9%). Conclusions: The frequency of self-medication in KSA is alarmingly high, where the most common type of drug used without a prescription is analgesics. There is a need for larger studies to evaluate the cause and outcome of self-medication in KSA, so that proper legislation and policies can be implemented to provide a better and safer healthcare system that is easy for every Saudi individual to access.