Alqurashi Hassan, Alzahrani Yousef M, Alzahrani Fahad, Alqurashi Omar M, Alanizi Salh F, Alzahrani Rawan, Shatla Mokhtar M
Preventive Medicine, Makkah Health Cluster, Makkah, SAU.
Family Medicine, King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital - Jeddah, Jeddah, SAU.
Cureus. 2025 Jul 14;17(7):e87947. doi: 10.7759/cureus.87947. eCollection 2025 Jul.
Background Ocular allergies represent a growing public health concern, yet awareness and knowledge gaps persist - particularly in high-risk regions like Makkah, Saudi Arabia, with its unique environmental allergens. This study assessed ocular allergy knowledge among Makkah's general population. Methods A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study was conducted with 404 adults (aged 18-60 years), recruited via convenience sampling. An Arabic-language Google Forms (Google Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA) questionnaire evaluated knowledge across eight domains: definition, symptoms, anatomy, prevention, treatment, and risk factors. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 27 (released 2020; IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA), along with the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results The mean knowledge score was 3.41/8 (SD = 1.92), indicating limited awareness. Key gaps included treatment options (30% correct) and affected eye anatomy (34.2% correct). Females scored higher than males (3.73 vs. 2.93, p < 0.001), and university-educated participants outperformed others (3.92 vs. 2.75-3.00, p < 0.001). Only 16.8% achieved high knowledge (six to eight correct answers). Conclusions Significant knowledge deficits exist, particularly regarding treatment and disease mechanisms. Targeted interventions should prioritize at-risk groups (males and less-educated individuals) through community and digital health campaigns.
眼部过敏日益引起公众健康关注，但认知和知识差距依然存在，尤其是在沙特阿拉伯麦加这样存在独特环境过敏原的高风险地区。本研究评估了麦加普通人群的眼部过敏知识。方法：采用基于问卷的横断面研究，通过便利抽样招募了404名18至60岁的成年人。一份阿拉伯语的谷歌表单（谷歌公司，美国加利福尼亚州山景城）问卷评估了八个领域的知识：定义、症状、解剖结构、预防、治疗以及风险因素。使用IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows 27版（2020年发布；IBM公司，美国纽约州阿蒙克）以及曼 - 惠特尼U检验和克鲁斯卡尔 - 沃利斯检验对数据进行分析。结果：平均知识得分是3.41/8（标准差 = 1.92），表明认知有限。主要差距包括治疗选择（30%正确）和受影响眼部的解剖结构（34.2%正确）。女性得分高于男性（3.73对2.93，p < 0.001），受过大学教育的参与者表现优于其他人（3.92对2.75 - 3.00，p < 0.001）。只有16.8%的人获得了高知识水平（六个至八个正确答案）。结论：存在显著的知识缺陷，尤其是在治疗和疾病机制方面。有针对性的干预措施应通过社区和数字健康活动，将重点放在高危人群（男性和受教育程度较低的个体）上。
