(180) Mapping of Knowledge, Attitude & Practice in Patients Toward Cardiovascular Disorders Attending Out-Patient Department of Cardiology in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are increasing and one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide. It is need-of-the-hour to know patients’ perspectives toward CVD to propagate awareness about cardiovascular diseases, their corresponding risk factors, and preventive strategies to minimize the admission, length of hospitalization, healthcare cost and increase the health-related quality of life of the patients.

Objectives: The study aimed to assess the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice of patients toward CVDs attending the Out-patient Department (OPD) of Cardiology during the study period.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the OPD of Cardiology for 4-weeks in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India. A 36-item questionnaire on CVDs, their risk factors, and preventive strategies was developed, validated (Cronbach’s alpha for reliability test is 0.87), and generated for participants aged ≥ 18 years. The questionnaire consisted of knowledge, attitude, and practice-based (KAP) questions related to CVDs along with socio-demographic details of the participants. KAP scores were compared by demographics with the Chi-square test as appropriate and Multinomial logistic regression was used to identify factors influencing knowledge, attitude, and practice level.

Results: A total of 112 patients [84 (75%), males] with a mean age of 58.96 ± 13.38 years participated in the study. Out of them, 79 (70.54%) came from rural areas, and 45 (40.18%) belonged to the lower middle class of socio-economic status. The majority [102 (91%)] of the participants were diagnosed with ischemic heart disease (IHD). All three KAP scores were of poor to excellent levels. The overall knowledge score was poor [88 (78.57%)], attitude and practice scores were excellent [92 (82.14%)], and [94 (83.93%)], respectively. The CVD knowledge, attitude, and practice mean scores amongst CVD patients were 9.79 ± 5.28, 4.38 ± 1.64, and 7.12 ± 1.80, respectively. There was a significant association found between marital status and knowledge level, socioeconomic status and attitude level, and age and practice level. In Multinomial logistic regression analysis, male gender (p = 0.019) and unmarried (p = 0.000) participants were significantly associated with high attitude scores.

Conclusions: The attitude and practice level amongst the participants were adequate, but the knowledge level was poor. Therefore, there is a necessity to target specific populations with tailored health education programs regarding lifestyle modification, and reduction of risk factors associated with CVDs to ameliorate the level of knowledge.