Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the level of knowledge and practice of foot self-care in diabetic patients in Primary care at National Guard hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among diabetic patients attending the three biggest primary healthcare centers of the National Guard Health Affairs in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (ISKAN clinic, HCSC, and NGCSC). The patients were asked to fill a self-administrated questionnaire that investigated demographics, knowledge, inspection, and practice.
Results: Among 390 diabetic patients, 74.1% had type 2 diabetes, 6.4% had foot ulcers, and 23.1% received training on diabetic care. The knowledge score was 10.86 ± 1.66, whereas practice score was 20.2 ± 3.5. The mean score of knowledge was significantly affected by education level (p < 0.001), whereas the mean score of practice was significantly varied regarding gender (p < 0.001), education level (p-value = 0.001), occupation (p < 0.001), duration of diabetes (p-value = 0.001), and treatment (p-value = 0.001).
Conclusion: Diabetic patients in this study had a good level of knowledge regarding foot self-care, whereas the practice was acceptable but not optimum.
Key words: Knowledge, practice, self-care, foot, diabetes.
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