Knowledge regarding diabetes mellitus among non-diabetic patients attending the outpatient department of the district hospital in Gorkha, Nepal

Abstract

Despite the fact that it is largely preventable, the prevalence of diabetes has been rising significantly in developing countries like Nepal, and is additionally increased because of people’s ignorance of preventive measures. Knowledge regarding diabetes among Nepalese adults is also found to be notably poor. This study attempts to assess the level of knowledge among non-diabetic patients visiting the outpatient department of a public hospital in Nepal. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 398 non-diabetic patients, aged 18 years and older, attending the outpatient department of the District Hospital in Gorkha, Nepal. The knowledge level was assessed using predefined scores. The data obtained were entered in EpiData version 3.1 software and were analyzed using SPSS version 20 software. Descriptive frequency, percent and mean were calculated, and multivariate analyses were adjusted for all the variables. The mean age of the study participants was 34.98 ± 13.53 years. The study revealed that 58.8% had poor knowledge about diabetes. Higher education status was associated with higher odds of having accurate knowledge regarding diabetes (p < 0.001), while those with no family history of diabetes had lower odds of good knowledge status (p < 0.001). A notable proportion of the participants had poor knowledge on diabetes mellitus. Education, occupation and family history of diabetes were associated with higher knowledge status. A strong emphasis on health education based on diabetes risk factors, symptoms, prevention and control measures is necessary.