AWARENESS OF CELIAC DISEASE AMONG SAUDI POPULATION

Background: Celiac disease ( CD ) is an autoimmune disorder Indus by gluten ingestion in genetic predispose patient, which will cause atrophy of small intestinal villous. There was study established in 2013, in three regions of Saudi kingdom and they said that “ Our data suggest celiac disease prevalence might be one of the highest in the world “, a few study about  this disease it may suggest of some awareness defect .

Objectives of the Study: To evaluate the public awareness and attitude towards coeliac disease. Methods:  It’s a cross-sectional randomized study. Estimated on  1001 cases to know the awareness of celiac disease among Saudi population

Results: One thousand and one participants joined this questionnaire from different regions in Saudi Arabia as in table (1). Regarding age,  the highest age group was 14 to 25 years (65.3% of the participants), followed by 25 to 35 years (21.47% of participants), then more than 36 years (11.69% of participants) .701 participant heard about gluten sensitivity before (70.03%) ,  382 participants (38.16%) were aware of the symptoms of gluten sensitivity ,and 182 participants (18.18%) were suffering from gluten sensitivity while 321 participant (32.07%) changed their diet regimen into gluten free diet.

Conclusion: A significant proportion of people  have poor knowledge of CD. This can potentially lead to delays in diagnosis and treatment. A campaign of increased awareness of CD is needed, which should include educational sessions and workshops for health care professionals and people  and use of media for public information

Keywords: Celiac disease, awareness, Saudi Population