Background: Stroke is a major cause of chronic adult disability and mortality globally, with rising incidence in India. There is a paucity of Indian studies on community stroke knowledge, attitude, and health-seeking behavior.
Objectives: The objective of this study is to assess the stroke awareness in terms of knowledge, attitude, and specific health-seeking behavior of adults in an urban slum.
Materials and Methods: The present study was a population-based cross-sectional study conducted in an urban slum of greater Hyderabad. By cluster sampling method, 396 adult residents of an urban slum were personally interviewed using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire.
Results: The mean age of participants was 43.25 (±9.85) years, 181 (45.71%) were females and 215 (54.29%) were males. 278 (70.20%) participants were aware of the term stroke, 35 (12.59%) participants knew brain to be the affected organ in stroke, 237 (85.25%) participants
had knowledge of at least one symptom of stroke, 260 (93.52%) participants had knowledge of at least one complication of stroke, 170 (61.15%) participants had knowledge of at least one risk factor of stroke, and 36 (12.94%) participants had knowledge of at least one mode of prevention of stroke. Health-seeking behavior: 76 (21.34%) participants were undergoing periodic health checkups including screening for diabetes and hypertension.
Conclusion: Stroke awareness in terms of knowledge, attitude, and health-seeking behavior among adults in an urban slum of Hyderabad, India, was observed to be low. Community health education programs focused on integrated early stroke identification and preventive measures would ease the mammoth burden of stroke morbidity and mortality for both patients and health systems.
Key words: Stroke; Community; Knowledge; Awareness; Attitude; Health-seeking Behavior
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