Eric S. Donkor|Mayowa Owolabi|Patrick Owiredu Bampoh|Thor Aspelund|Vilmundur Gudnason
Community awareness of stroke in Accra, Ghana
University of Ghana|University College Hospital, Ibadan|University of Ibadan|Tamale Teaching Hospital|Icelandic Heart Association|Icelandic Heart Association
community awareness stroke especially risk factors warning signs important control disease subsaharan africa little known community awareness stroke though brunt stroke currently borne region aim study evaluate stroke awareness accra capital city ghana particularly risk factors warning signs crosssectional study involving systematic sampling 63 households 11 sub metropolitan areas accra structured questionnaire used collect stroke awareness data respondents randomly sampled selected households logistic regression analyses done identify predictors main outcome variables including recognition stroke risk factors stroke warning signs organ affected stroke 40 n 277 693 respondents correctly identified brain organ affected stroke similarly less half respondents could recognize established stroke risk factors well established stroke warning signs 70 n 485 respondents either believed stroke preventable disease lifestyle alterations made reduce risk stroke stroke requires emergency treatment multivariate analysis predictors stroke awareness age 50 years 056 ci 035092 p 0021 presence stroke risk factor 237 ci 152371 p 0001 christian religion 1486 ci 13716101 p 003 though stroke perceived serious preventable disease accra community awareness risk factors warning signs suboptimal indicates communitybased education programs increase public awareness stroke could contribute decreasing risk stroke increasing speed hospital presentation stroke onset