Abstract:
Introduction: Disease-related knowledge plays
a critical role in facilitating patients’ acceptance
of their diagnosis and compliance with active
participation in the treatment of inflammatory
bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this study was to
analyse the deficits in knowledge for future health
education programmes.
Methods: A validated questionnaire was used to
assess and analyse disease-related knowledge
among patients with ulcerative colitis (UC)
and Crohn’s disease who attended outpatient
gastroenterology clinics of a tertiary care hospital
in Sri Lanka.
Results: There were 184 patients (83 males)
with a mean age of 44.5 (range 20–78) years.
83.2 percent of the patients had UC. The mean
duration of IBD was 8.17 (range 1–28) years, and
33.7 percent of the patients had IBD for over ten
years. The mean Crohn’s and Colitis Knowledge
questionnaire score was 6.86. The majority
(68.5 percent) of the patients were aware that
sulfasalazine can be used to reduce exacerbations.
There was no statistical difference in diseaserelated
knowledge between genders, but the
level of education showed a significant difference.
Only 14.1 percent of patients were aware that
prolonged IBD is a risk factor for colorectal
cancer and that screening for colorectal cancer
is important. 9.2 percent of the study population
was aware of restorative proctocolectomy.
Conclusion: There is a lack of knowledge
regarding colorectal cancer risk and surgical
interventions. There was no significant difference
in the knowledge scores between genders but
there was a significant association with the
educational level.
