Factors associated with knowledge of hypertension among hypertensive patients at the Teaching hospital, Jaffna, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Knowledge of hypertension among patients is crucial for its effective management. The objective of this study was to assess the factors associated with knowledge of hypertension among hypertensive patients attending the medical clinic at Teaching Hospital, Jaffna. It is a hospital-based cross-sectional analytical study conducted from November 2020 to October 2021. A systematic sampling method was used to select 427 hypertensive patients. The data were collected using a pre-tested and validated interviewer-administered questionnaire and data extraction form after obtaining ethical clearance. The total score on hypertension knowledge questionnaire was 25. Data were analyzed using SPSS software. Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to assess the association between HT knowledge on hypertension among patients and selected variables at α level of 0.05. The response rate of patients was 97.19% (n=415). The median age of patients was 55 years (IQR=13). The majority of the patients were female (65.5%). Most of the patients (72.3%) had uncontrolled blood pressure. The median of knowledge on hypertension score of patients was 11 (IQR=4). Knowledge of hypertension among patients was associated with gender, marital status, educational level, employment status, family history of hypertension, number of antihypertensive medications used and herbal usage. However, age, duration of hypertension, regular clinic attendance, presence of uncontrolled blood pressure, and presence of co-morbidities were not associated with knowledge of hypertension. Patients have inadequate knowledge of hypertension irrespective of controlled or uncontrolled blood pressure. Patients’ knowledge needs to be improved for the effective management of hypertension.