KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES, AND PRACTICES TOWARDS PREVENTION AND EARLY DETECTION OF CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE IN SUDAN
This study was carried out to describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices of Sudanese patients with chronic illnesses towards prevention and early detection of chronic kidney disease. Patients with chronic illnesses such as hypertension and diabetes need to adopt healthy attitudes and practices and gain knowledge regarding prevention and early detection of kidney disease to decrease the prevalence of dialysis-related complications and costs. A total of 740 patients were recruited from out-patients clinics in Sudan Knowledge, attitudes and practices about kidney disease prevention and early detection were measured using the chronic kidney disease screening index which was developed by the researcher and tested for validity and reliability. The results revealed that most of the participants have knowledge about kidney disease; however, half of them had wrong information related to signs and symptoms of chronic kidney disease. The majority of the participants were not aware about the importance of discovering health problems at early stages. Conclusion and implications: Improvement in population understanding about chronic kidney disease is needed to advance their awareness and practices to make appropriate decisions towards health promotion and better quality of life.
Attitudes, Chronic Kidney Disease, Knowledge, Practices, Risk Assessment