title: Awareness and knowledge of osteoporosis in Vietnamese women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vietnamese women are at particular risk of osteoporosis and its complications. This study examined osteoporosis knowledge and awareness among Vietnamese women who have accessed health care.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 217 women, 13 to 76 years of age, who were attending 1 of 2 health care facilities in Da Nang, Vietnam, between November and December 2009 completed a questionnaire assessing their awareness of osteoporosis and measuring their knowledge using a 30-item instrument reflecting 9 knowledge domains (eg, risk factors, diagnosis, prognosis).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A majority (81.6%) of the women had heard of osteoporosis. Awareness was associated with education, working in health care, and having a family member with osteoporosis. On average, Vietnamese women answered 49% of the knowledge questions correctly; scores ranged from 0 to 26 questions correct out of 30 (mean = 14.71 ± 5.2, median = 15). Mean knowledge scores were higher among those reporting a family member with osteoporosis, nurses (vs other vocations), and women with a high school education or greater (relative to those who had not completed high school). More than 90% of the women expressed interest in a prevention and treatment program.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Vietnamese women may have heard of osteoporosis, yet they would benefit from education targeting prevention and treatment of the disease.
authors.affiliation: University of Texas, Galveston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Nguyen V
authors.initials: NV
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: The Methodist Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Tri A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Dinh
authors.affiliation: Da Nang Center for Reproductive Health, Da Nang, Vietnam.
authors.forename: Quang V
authors.initials: QV
authors.lastname: Ngo
authors.affiliation: Da Nang General Hospital, Da Nang, Vietnam.
authors.forename: Vinh D
authors.initials: VD
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.affiliation: University of Texas, Galveston, TX, USA Mayo Clinic Rochester, MN, USA radeckibreitkopf.carmen@mayo.edu.
authors.forename: Carmen Radecki
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Breitkopf
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000208:ethnology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014744:Vietnam; D055815:Young Adult