title: Public lacks knowledge on chronic kidney disease: telephone survey.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine knowledge of chronic kidney disease in the general public.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional telephone survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Hong Kong.
  
  
  METHODS
  Community-dwelling adults who spoke Chinese in Hong Kong.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 47.3% (516/1091) out of all subjects who were eligible to participate. The final survey population included 516 adults (55.6% female), of whom over 80% had received a secondary level of education or higher. Close to 20% of the participants self-reported a diagnosis of hypertension. Few (17.8%) realised the asymptomatic nature of chronic kidney disease. Less than half of these individuals identified hypertension (43.8%) or diabetes (44.0%) as risk factors of kidney disease. Awareness of high dietary sodium as a risk factor for chronic kidney disease was high (79.5%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The public in Hong Kong is poorly informed about chronic kidney disease, with major knowledge gaps regarding the influence of hypertension on kidney disease. We are concerned about the public's unawareness of hypertension being a risk factor for kidney disease. Future health education should target areas of knowledge deficits.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Szeto
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Bonnie  C H
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: C B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Philip K T
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D048909:Diabetes Complications; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006723:Hong Kong / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D051436:Renal Insufficiency, Chronic / Q000209:etiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012982:Sodium, Dietary / Q000009:adverse effects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D012982:Sodium, Dietary
keywords: Health knowledge, attitudes, practice; Questionnaires; Renal insufficiency, chronic