Raju Sapkota, M Ahmed Abdullah, Hugo Onumajuru, Shahina Pardhan
Overall, participants showed inadequate KAP, uncontrolled diabetes, and a high diabetic retinopathy percentage. Older age and longer diabetes duration were consistently associated with poorer KAP, uncontrolled diabetes, and STR. The findings highlight the need for targeted diabetes education and screening programmes to improve awareness and early detection of diabetes-related eye complications in Pakistan.
AIM/OBJECTIVES: To examine demographic factors influencing knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP), glycaemic control and sight‑threatening retinopathy (STR) among diabetes patients in Pakistan.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Al-Shifa Eye Trust Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, with 517 consecutive diabetes patients (mean age = 63.4 ± 10.5 years). A validated questionnaire in Urdu captured the KAP data. Data on fasting blood glucose (FBG), blood pressure (BP), and STR were also collected. Age, gender, literacy, employment status, diabetes duration, and treatment served as independent variables.
RESULTS: Participants showed limited understanding of the importance of controlling BP (51.3%) and cholesterol (64.1%), the risk of blindness due to diabetes (60.0%), and that a diabetic eye test differed from a routine eye test for spectacles (60.9%). These knowledge gaps were more common among older, female, and illiterate individuals. 70.7% of participants reported they would not seek an eye test if they were seeing well, with those with longer diabetes duration (>6 years) more likely to do so (OR = 1.05, p < 0.001). Older age and longer diabetes duration were significantly associated with reduced physical activity (p < 0.001). High FBG levels (>8.5 mmol/L) were significantly associated with older age, illiteracy, and longer diabetes duration. A total of 45.9% of participants had diabetic retinopathy, and 9.9% had STR. Older age (OR = 1.12, p < 0.001), longer diabetes duration (OR = 3.4, p = 0.04), and unemployment (OR = 6.2, p < 0.001) predicted STR significantly.
CONCLUSION: Overall, participants showed inadequate KAP, uncontrolled diabetes, and a high diabetic retinopathy percentage. Older age and longer diabetes duration were consistently associated with poorer KAP, uncontrolled diabetes, and STR. The findings highlight the need for targeted diabetes education and screening programmes to improve awareness and early detection of diabetes-related eye complications in Pakistan.