Background: Gallstone disease is a common disease associated with a high incidence of hospital admissions with high costs of treatment and high morbidity rates. The present study aims at evaluating the awareness of the general population in Najran city, Saudi Arabia toward gallstones.
Methodology: A total of 277 adult subjects from both genders participated in the study. An online questionnaire was employed, reviewed, validated, and translated into simple Arabic then published online and the link was distributed among general populations.
Results: Most of the included subjects had heard about gallstones before, and most of them had relatives who suffered from gallstones. The study found that majority of the subjects has a fair knowledge regarding the clinical presentation of gallstones, causes, gender difference, diagnostic procedures, and complications. The overall knowledge score was unsatisfactory among most of the subjects (63.2%). There was statistical significant relation between total knowledge score with education level and working as a specialist.
Conclusion: This study showed an unsatisfactory level of awareness among general populations in Najran city, Saudi Arabia toward gallstones. There is a need for more efforts from health authorities to increase the awareness of the general population toward gallstones.
Key words: Awareness, gall stones, general population, Najran city
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