Publication:

Students’ awareness on osteoporosis in Khalkhal city, 2014

Background Osteoporosis is a “silent killer” that millions of people around the world suffer from. It is estimated that about 9.0 million osteoporotic fractures occurred in 2000 and that many were due to osteoporosis. Awareness about osteoporosis and factors contributing to it is of great benefit and is a major public health challenge. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of female university students about osteoporosis through a cross-sectional descriptive analytical study.

Methods Two hundred female students among Medical Sciences, Payam-e-Noor and Azad universities of Khalkhal city were selected by random sampling based on their type of university and levels of Knowledge. A questionnaire including demographic data and 22 questions on osteoporosis was completed to assess their knowledge. The reliability and validity of the questionnaire was checked by scientific methods. In this study, knowledge means the sum of scores which was classified as desirable, partially desirable and undesirable. Collected data was analyzed by statistical methods in SPSS.19 and proper statistical tests.

Results The results showed that most knowledge of the students was partially desirable (55.5%). The most resources of knowledge were media (29%). The knowledge scores were not statistically positive associated with educational level (p=0.568) and source of information (p=0.425), while association was found for age (p=0.014), gender (p=0.0028) and type of University (p=0.043).

Conclusions On the whole to reduce osteoporosis, it is necessary to concentrate more on intervention programs to increase women’s knowledge about this silent disease.