Hira Ajmal, Hina Shareef, Sohail Ahmad, Mussarat Ali, Shahid Iqbal, Sadaf Qayyum.
Assessment of Knowledge about Diabetic Retinopathy and Motivating Factors for Screening among Diabetic patients in Rawalpindi.
Al-Shifa J Ophthalmol Jan ;17(1):24-9.

Background: Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is the fifth leading cause of blindness in worldwide and fourth cause of blindness in Pakistan. This study assesses level of knowledge about DR among diabetic patient and the factors which motivate patient for DR screening. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted (including 370 diabetic patients) from October 2019 to December 2019 at three general hospitals of Rawalpindi. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the information from patients it consisted of three sections i.e., demographic profile of diabetic patient, knowledge about DR, the factors that motivates patient for DR screening. After collection of data, it was coded and entered into SPSS version 20. Then the data were analyzed using Chi-square test. Results: about 45.7% had high knowledge about DR and 42.4% had high motivation level for DR screening. Socio-economic status like education level, family history of DM, and monthly income had influence on knowledge of DR and shows statistically significant effect on knowledge about DR (p-value < 0.001). Education level also shows statistically significant effect on the factors that motivate patients for DR screening (p- value<0.001). Conclusion: The study showed lack of awareness of DR among diabetic patients in the study population. There is an urgent need for early DR screening and for refining knowledge and awareness of diabetes and DR in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

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