The Level of School Teachers' Knowledge About First-Aid Management and Control of Epistaxis in Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Epistaxis is an acute episode of nasal bleeding commonlycaused in children bytraumatic injuriesin aschool setting.It is one of thecommonear, nose, and throat emergencies, which should be managed with first-aid measures.To the best ofour knowledge, no studieshave been conductedamong school teachers in the Qassim regionofSaudi Arabiaregarding this information. Thisstudythusaimed to assess levelsof knowledge about first-aid management and control of epistaxis among school teachers intheQassim region, Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study using avalidatedonline questionnaire was distributed via social media platforms. Informationwas collectedregarding sociodemographic characteristics, and eight items assessed participants'knowledgeaboutepistaxis and its management. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariable analyses were conducted to assess the factors associated with good levelsof knowledge. The study had atotal of 1,152 participants, of which 69.7% were female. The mean of knowledge was 3.29 (SD=1.39, range: 0-7). Only 19.4% of participants had a good level of knowledge. In multivariate analysis, females and those whohadreceived informationon firstaid to stop nose-bleedswere significantly associated with good knowledgelevels(adjusted odds ratio {AOR}: 1.72, 95% CI: 1.18-2.51,p=0.005; and AOR: 3.38, 95% CI: 2.47-4.64, p<0.001, respectively). Less thanone-quarter of participants had good knowledgelevels. Health education sessions for teachers are highly recommendedand should specifically targetmale teachers.