KNOWLEDGE AND PREVALENCE OF DIABETES AND HYPERTENSION AMONG ADULTS IN SELECTED VILLAGES OF UDUPI DISTRICT - KARNATAKA

Objectives : to assess the prevalence and knowledge of diabetes and hypertension among adults and to find the association between knowledge level and variables. Methods : Descriptive survey was conducted among adults in the selected villages of Udupi district during July 2009-July 2010. The study subjects were interviewed to collect the details with a questionnaire. Total 385 adults were selected by non-probability convenient sampling technique. Data were entered in SPSS11.5 version and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results : Out of 385 adults, 27.8% of adults were females and 72.2% had their education up to primary level. Majority (82.2%) of the adults were having unskilled occupation and 96% of them had exposure to mass media. Majority (50.4%) of them had average knowledge on diabetes mellitus and prevalence was found to be only 5%. Majority (50.6%) of the sample had average level of knowledge about hypertension and the prevalence of hypertension was 19.5%. Result shows that there is no significant association between knowledge and selected variables.