The knowledge of osteoporosis risk factors in a Greek female population.
OBJECTIVE
The social and economic burden of osteoporosis is important since it concerns a continuously aging population, while the disease is silent until the emergence of fractures. Aim of the study was to assess female population knowledge about osteoporosis risk factors and to identify the risk factors of the studied population.


METHODS
A sample of 99 (aged: 61.59+/-9.61 years) women under treatment for osteoporosis or osteopenia answered the questionnaire provided by their pharmacists and were included in the study's analysis. Various parameters on osteoporosis awareness and risk factor knowledge of the population sample studied were analyzed.


RESULTS
It was revealed that 96% of the participants knew osteoporosis definition and sources of this knowledge were one or more of the following: doctors (86.3%), mass media (20%) and friends or relatives (13.7%). It was found that the older age was associated with less knowledge (OR=0.93, CI: 0.88-0.97, p=0.004), and higher education with increased knowledge (OR=1.68, CI: 1.10-2.55, p=0.014) about osteoporosis. 56.4% of the participants were aware of at least one osteoporosis risk factor. In multivariate analysis, it was revealed that the participants who referred increased milk products consumption in childhood (OR=3.72, CI: 1.34-10.36, p=0.012) and current performance of physical activity (OR=13.06, CI: 3.22-53.05, p<0.001) were more likely to be informed about osteoporosis risk factors; age >61 years was associated with decreased knowledge of risk factors (OR=0.27, CI: 0.09-0.82, p=0.018).


CONCLUSIONS
This study implies that a higher degree of participant's health education may result in the avoidance of osteoporosis risk factors. Increasing knowledge of osteoporosis should be a priority for future intervention programs in order to promote specific behavioural strategies for osteoporosis prevention.
Alexandraki
Krystallenia I
KI
Department of Endocrinology, Laiko Hospital, School of Medicine, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. krisalex@med.uoa.gr
Syriou
Vassiliki
V
Ziakas
Panayiotis D
PD
Apostolopoulos
Nikolaos V
NV
Alexandrakis
Antonios I
AI
Piperi
Christina
C
Kavoulaki
Ekaterini
E
Myriokefalitakis
Ioannis
I
Korres
Georgios
G
Diamanti-Kandarakis
Evanthia
E
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000818:Animals; D004522:Educational Status; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends; D006115:Greece; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008402:Mass Media; D008875:Middle Aged; D008892:Milk; D009043:Motor Activity; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015663:Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D010820:Physicians; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires