Association of Knowledge, Attitude and Behavioral Risk Factors With Coronary Artery Disease

Objective: To assess knowledge, attitudes and behavioral risk factors and theirassociation with CAD. Methodology: We conducted a hospital based, case control study in two majorhospitals in Peshawar Individuals whowere well oriented in time, space and voluntarily agreed to participate in the studywere selected. Patients with diagnosed CAD were selected as per Monica criteria.The cases and controls were matched on the basis of their gender, age,occupation and level of education. An original questionnaire was used for datacollection. The data was analyzed using SPSS Version 20 and presented in theformof graphs and text. Results: About 177 patients were selected, out of which 59 were cases and 118were controls (1:2). Our study showed a significant association between lack ofknowledge of risk factors of CAD and the odds of developing CAD. Participantswith poor knowledge scores were 3.73 times more likely to develop CAD thanthose with good knowledge scores. People with poor attitude scores were 9.34times more likely to suffer from heart disease. Smoking and high carbohydratediet were the most significant risk factors among the participants. Conclusion: On the basis of findings of our study, we conclude that knowledgeand attitude significantly affects the development of coronary artery disease andthere is a strong relationship between the KAP variables and behavioral riskfactors of CAD. Educating general population about CAD and its risk factors cansignificantly reduce the incidence of CAD.