Knowledge levels and sociodemographic influences on dementia awareness in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia
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Feras A Al-Awad 1 * , Assim AlAbdulkader 2 , Malak Al Shammari 2 , Shaimaa Nabil Rohaiem 3 , Khalid AlHarkan 2 , Ahmed Shawky Mohammedin 4 , Mohammed A AlShurem 5 , Dalal M AlBakr 1 , Fatimah AlKhunaizi 1 , Mohammed Almaslami 1 , Ahmed AlNajidi 1
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1 Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, SAUDI ARABIA2 Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, SAUDI ARABIA3 Department of Geriatrics and Gerontology, Ain Shams University, Cairo, EGYPT4 Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, SAUDI ARABIA5 Department of Neurology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, SAUDI ARABIA* Corresponding Author

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to examine the level of knowledge about dementia among the public and explore differences in knowledge between sociodemographic groups.
Materials & methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study surveyed individuals living in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Dementia knowledge assessment scale (DKAS) was used to measure knowledge about dementia. Multiple regression was used to identify the significant predictors of higher levels of knowledge about dementia.
Results: Among 1,030 participants, the mean DKAS score was 20.5 (standard deviation=10.3) out of 50. A higher level knowledge about dementia was significantly and positively associated with university education (β=2.42; p=0.010) and income higher (β=2.78; p=0.001). On the other hand, the total DKAS score was significantly and negatively associated with being male (β=-1.78; p=0.003), not knowing a person with dementia (PwD) (β=-.56; p<0.001), and not living with a PwD (β=-1.57; p=0.120).
Conclusions: The level of knowledge about dementia is low among people living in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. Enhancing the community’s knowledge and awareness about dementia and its related topics should be considered at the regional or national levels.

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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Original Article

ELECTRON J GEN MED, Volume 21, Issue 1, February 2024, Article No: em567

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejgm/14159

Publication date: 26 Jan 2024

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