[The main health problems according to patients' opinion].
OBJECTIVE
To know the health problems or diseases that patients of 2 basic health areas (BHA) assess as the most important for Spanish population and for themselves; to know if any relation exists between these problems and their existence in the family or social patients' environment.


METHODS
An observational cross-sectional and descriptive study.


METHODS
Four clinics of the BHA Sant Josep (L'Hospitalet de Llobregat) and 2 clinics of the BHA Sant Martí (Barcelonés).Patients. The sample consists of 360 patients aged above 26 years who attended clinics for some health problem. Participants were chosen by a randomised systematic sampling, from May to October 2000.


RESULTS
Data were gathered from a questionnaire of ten items. According with the participants, the main problems for Spanish population and for themselves were: cancer, cardiovascular diseases and AIDS. Cancer (58,61%; 95% CI, 53,53-63,69) and AIDS (15,27%; 95% CI, 11,56-18,98) are the problems pointed out as research priorities. The aparato locomotor (22,10%; 95% CI, 17,82-26,38), hypertension (14,74%; 95% CI, 11,08-18,40) and diabetes (13,14%, 95% CI, 9,66-16,62) are the main problems suffered by the surveyed. Cancer is the disease that more participants' relatives suffered.


CONCLUSIONS
Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are the pathologies that cause more concern among the surveyed and these are the diseases which mostly affect their relatives and relationships. Nevertheless their worry for the AIDS don't show their immediate reality. Frequently, patients don't recognize the health problem that motivated their visit as a real disease.
Icart Isern
M T
MT
Departamento de Enfermería de Salud Pública, Salud Mental y Materno-Infantil, Escuela de Enfermería, Universidad de Barcelona, Spain. ticart@bell.ub.es
Icart Isern
M C
MC
Pulpón Segura
A M
AM
Mena Sánchez
J
J
García De Las Mestas Castilla
A M
AM
Carrés Esteve
L
L
D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003625:Data Collection; D004194:Disease; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010361:Patients