Background: While the prevalence of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in Egypt is relatively high, data on the awareness of Egyptians about the cause of RHD are lacking.
Methods: Using a pre-tested questionnaire, we performed a multicenter survey of outpatients attending 15 university hospitals across Egypt.
Results: A total of 6958 participants were interviewed. Most subjects (81.7%) reported a previous experience of sore throat. Seeking treatment, most patients (69.3%) consulted a medical professional, while the others relied on self/peer medication. Individuals consulting a physician received antibiotics more frequently than those who did not (89.1 vs. 38.7%; OR: 12.4, 95% CI 10.8-14.1). The median RHD knowledge score in our sample was 4 (IQR = 6). While most subjects (56.3%) claimed knowledge of the complications of an untreated sore throat, only a third (34%) were aware of the association between sore throat and RHD. In a multivariate analysis, older age (Mean Difference [MD]: 1.58, 95% CI 1.37-1.79), female gender (MD: 0.89, 95% CI 0.75-1.04), higher education (MD: 1.10, 95% CI 0.90-1.30), and being interviewed outside Cairo (MD: 0.67, 95% CI 0.51-0.82) were significant predictors of knowledge about RHD.
Conclusion: The current study showed low levels of awareness on the cause of RHD among Egyptians and highlights a pressing need for interventions to address this public knowledge gap.
Keywords: Egypt; knowledge; rheumatic fever; rheumatic heart disease; survey.