Assessment of Saudi Society’s Knowledge Regarding Hypothyroidism and Its Neuropsychiatric Clinical Manifestations

Abstract

Background: This study was conducted to assess the level of knowledge and awareness of hypothyroidism and its neuropsychiatric clinical manifestations among the Saudi population. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study employing a convenient sampling technique, conducted between February and May 2022. A questionnaire was distributed online to all participants in all five regions. Results: In this survey, a total of 2016 Saudi citizens participated. When asked about depression, more than half of the participants (59.6%) correctly identified depression as one of the neuropsychiatric clinical symptoms of hypothyroidism. Nearly half of the participants (47.5%) were unaware that anxiety was not a neuropsychiatric manifestation of hypothyroidism. With a percentage of 91.0%, the majority of participants exhibited poor knowledge. The regression analysis showed that males have significantly reduced knowledge about hypothyroidism than females (coefficient −3.686, p-value < 0.0001). Similarly, those who have “enough income and can save” were more knowledgeable than others (coefficient 0.731, p-value < 0.02). Regarding the source of information, journals provide three times more information (p-value 0.0001), and healthcare practitioners provides four times more information as compared to family and friends (p-value 0.0001). Conclusion: Due to a lack of knowledge about hypothyroidism and its complications, symptoms, risk factors, and treatment, the most viable solution to these misconceptions would be to implement a variety of educational programs to increase public awareness of this issue.

Knowledge of Thyroid Disease Manifestation and Risk Factors Among the General Population in the Tabuk Region of Saudi Arabia

“…Gender was found to be significantly associated with the level of knowledge about thyroid disorders with the female gender tending to have higher levels of knowledge compared to males, and this was found to be consistent with the findings in Alzahrani et al's study [ 5 ].…”

“…The proposed research project aimed to investigate the level of public awareness and knowledge of thyroid disease, identify the factors that influence thyroid disease recognition and treatment, and develop effective strategies to improve public awareness of thyroid disease. The findings from this study can inform the development of effective educational programs to improve early detection and treatment of thyroid disease, ultimately improving health outcomes for the population in the Tabuk region [ 5 ].…”

Screening factors affecting proper levothyroxine therapy among patients with primary hypothyroidism: a cross-sectional study

“…In this study, only 25% of patients had a high level of knowledge, while the majority had a moderate (41%) to poor level of knowledge (34%). This contrasts with a study from Saudi Arabia in 2023, where only 9% of participants had a high level of knowledge, while the remaining 91% had a low level of understanding [ 35 ]. Other research in Saudi Arabia indicated that half of the respondents had a moderate knowledge level [ 36 ], but only 14.2% showed a satisfactory understanding of the condition [ 37 ].…”