Central Department of Public Health, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Padma Kanya Multiple Campus, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal.
PLoS One. 2024 Oct 25;19(10):e0312738. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0312738. eCollection 2024.
Osteoporosis is a major public health problem that can lead to physical disability, working performance limitations, decreased self-sufficiency, and increased hospitalization and mortality rates. People are unaware of osteoporosis, and it is often undiagnosed until fractures occur. Limited studies have been conducted to determine the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding osteoporosis among middle-aged women in Nepal. This study aimed to determine existing knowledge, attitude, and practice towards osteoporosis among middle and old-aged women in Nepal. A cross-sectional study was conducted among the selected wards of Kirtipur Municipality to recruit 405 participants. Participants were selected using a stratified random sampling technique. Face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire were performed to collect the data. Frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation were used to describe the characteristics of participants. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the factors associated with knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding osteoporosis. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to determine the correlation between knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding osteoporosis. The mean ± SD age of the participants was 46.2 ±9.1 years. Nearly half of the participants (48.8%) had good knowledge, while 57.7% and 51.8% had positive attitudes and good practices regarding osteoporosis, respectively. The occupation and income of the participants were statistically significant and associated with the knowledge level. Meanwhile, age, ethnicity, education, occupation, and monthly household income were associated with attitude level. With a good practice level, ethnicity, family type, and education were statistically significant. The knowledge-attitude (rka = 0.093, p < 0.05), attitude-practice (rap = 0.171, p < 0.001), and knowledge-practice (rkp = 0.274, p < 0.001) for osteoporosis were positively correlated. The study found that still around half of the middle and old-aged women had poor knowledge, negative attitudes, and poor practices regarding osteoporosis. Moreover, it highlighted inadequate dietary practices, such as low consumption of milk, vegetables, fruits, and calcium supplements among women, indicates are at greater risk of osteoporosis. The study emphasized the need for community-based awareness programs for the target population such as housemakers, and lower-income groups, to prevent osteoporosis among women.
骨质疏松症是一个主要的公共卫生问题，可导致身体残疾、工作表现受限、自理能力下降以及住院和死亡率增加。人们对骨质疏松症认识不足，通常直到发生骨折才被诊断出来。目前，针对尼泊尔中年女性骨质疏松症的知识、态度和实践情况，开展的研究有限。本研究旨在确定尼泊尔中年和老年女性对骨质疏松症的现有认知、态度和实践情况。在柯特布尔市的选定区进行了一项横断面研究，以招募 405 名参与者。使用分层随机抽样技术选择参与者。使用结构化问卷进行面对面访谈以收集数据。使用频率、百分比、均值和标准差来描述参与者的特征。使用多变量逻辑回归确定与骨质疏松症知识、态度和实践相关的因素。使用 Pearson 相关系数确定骨质疏松症知识、态度和实践之间的相关性。参与者的平均年龄为 46.2±9.1 岁。将近一半的参与者（48.8%）对骨质疏松症有很好的认识，而 57.7%和 51.8%对骨质疏松症的态度和实践分别为积极和良好。参与者的职业和收入与知识水平具有统计学意义并相关。同时，年龄、种族、教育、职业和月家庭收入与态度水平相关。在良好的实践水平方面，种族、家庭类型和教育具有统计学意义。骨质疏松症的知识-态度（rka=0.093，p<0.05）、态度-实践（rap=0.171，p<0.001）和知识-实践（rkp=0.274，p<0.001）之间呈正相关。研究发现，仍有一半左右的中年和老年女性对骨质疏松症的知识水平较低、态度消极、实践较差。此外，研究还强调了女性饮食实践中的不足，例如低钙饮食，包括牛奶、蔬菜、水果和钙补充剂的摄入，这表明她们患骨质疏松症的风险更高。研究强调需要针对目标人群（如家庭主妇和低收入群体）开展基于社区的宣传计划，以预防女性骨质疏松症。
