International Conference on Neurological disorder and Neuroimmunology
Montreal, Canada
Mustafa Osama
University of Sharjah, UAE
Title: Awareness and knowledge of heart attacks among adults in the UAE
Biography
Biography: Mustafa Osama
Abstract
Background: With one in every four cardiovascular disease related death in the UAE attributed to heart attacks, this study aims to determine the current level of awareness of heart attacks among adults in the UAE. In doing so, economical, medical and voluntary resources may be utilized more effectively in creating beneficial educational programs/facilities that specifically target the knowledge gaps and misconceptions among the UAE population.
Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted on a total of 403 participants aged 20-60 years old using self-administered questionnaires. All health professionals were excluded. The questionnaires were distributed at various locations within Sharjah. Collected data was then analyzed and interpreted using the SPSS program.
Results: Out of the 403 individuals who participated in this research, 57.6% of the respondents were female and 42.4% were male, 49.9% of which were below the age of 30, 34.7% of which were between the ages of 30-40 and 15.4% of which were above the age of 40. No significant correlation was found between the knowledge of heart attack and the following variables: age, gender, suffering from chronic diseases and educational level (p> 0.05). While people with previous heart attack experience were found to be more knowledgeable about all aspects of heart attack (35.7%), (p=0.001).Out of all the signs & symptoms listed, chest pain and shortness of breath were the most identified with 76% & 67.5% participants identifying them respectively. As for risk factors, the most identifiable were high blood pressure (86.6%), stress (81%) and smoking (80%). In general, reducing fat consumption (88.4%) was the most practiced preventative measure, while smoking cessation (78.9%) was the most practiced measure for the purpose of preventing heart attacks (63.1%). The targeted population’s knowledge was mostly attributed to the Internet (34%). On assessing total level of knowledge, 46.8% of the targeted population scored above 15 out 28 from the total knowledge score, and only 6.7% scored above 20.
Conclusion: The study indicates the dire need for further heart attack awareness among the UAE population, possibly by utilizing different platforms (i.e. cyber campaigns, community fundraisers, marathons, etc.).