Assessment of emergency physicians’ awareness and knowledge of hereditary angioedema

Abstract

Aims: Hereditary angioedema can occur with life-threatening attacks of severe laryngeal edema, and epinephrine is insufficient in the treatment of attacks. We sought an answer to the question, 'Do emergency physicians, who frequently encounter angioedema cases that are so important for the emergency department, have sufficient awareness about this issue?' Methods: In this study, the online questionnaire was conducted among physicians working in adult emergency departments between April and August 2022. The questionnaire form consisted of two parts. The first part contained three questions about medical experience, academic degree, and encounter with hereditary angioedema patients. The second part of the questionnaire contained seven questions about the diagnosis and treatment of hereditary angioedema. Results: A total of 103 physicians working in emergency departments participated in the survey. The proportion of physicians is as follows: The percentage of physicians with less than 15 years of experience was 92.2%. Research assistants represented the largest group of participants at 51.5%. When asked "What is not a symptom of hereditary angioedema?" Only 40.6% of physicians could answer the question correctly. While 39.8% of physicians thougt that epinephrine and antihistamines were useful in treating these attacks, 53.4% felt that epinephrine and antihistamines were not. While there was a difference in hereditary angioedema awareness between the group with more than 15 years of professional experience and the group with less experience, there was no meaningful difference between research assistants, specialists, and academicians. According to this survey, professional experience was important, but academic title did not make a difference in terms of disease awareness. Conclusion: It is necessary to increase the awareness of emergency physicians about hereditary angioedema, which can cause fatal attacks and whose diagnosis and treatment are different from other angioedemas.