Assessing Osteoporosis Knowledge and Beliefs Among Adults Living in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Knowledge and beliefs about osteoporosis have been considered one of the vital parts of early prevention against it. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate knowledge and beliefs toward osteoporosis using the Osteoporosis Knowledge Assessment Tool (OKAT) and Osteoporosis Health Belief Scale (OHBS) questionnaires among the public in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from March 2019 to April 2019 among adults aged 15 years and above. A validated questionnaire was allocated electronically to the participants through social platforms (such as Twitter and WhatsApp) using a convenience sampling technique. Results: A total of 754 participants completed the questionnaire. The majority were females 481 (63.8%). A total of 34 (4.1%) have not heard about osteoporosis before. Respondents scored a total mean of 7.92 +/- 3.0 for the OKAT questionnaire and a mean score of 126.74 +/- 22.38 for the OHBS questionnaire. These two scores were significantly associated with age groups and gender (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Although there is a relative increase in the knowledge of our sample, the belief toward osteoporosis is evidently lower. Therefore, implementing educational programs that tackle belief perception and other preventive measures such as healthy eating habits, physical activities, and educational materials are needed in the future.