PATIENTS` AWARENESS OF OSTEOPOROSIS

Osteoporozo uvrščamo med sodobne bolezni, ki tako v svetu kot pri nas zaradi velike razsežnosti ne predstavlja samo ekonomskega, ampak tudi zdravstveni problem. Bolezen najbolj ogroža starostnike in ženske po menopavzi. Bolezen odkrijemo ponavadi šele takrat, ko se pojavijo komplikacije - zlomi. Najpogostejši zlomi so zlomi vretenc, najnevarnejši pa je zlom kolka. Najpomembnejša preiskava za odkrivanje osteoporoze je merjenje mineralne kostne gostote z metodo dvoenergijske rentgenske absorpciometrije. V diplomskem delu smo želeli predstaviti osteoporozo kot bolezen in pomen zdravstveno vzgojnega dela. Medicinska sestra ima pri tem pomembno vlogo, saj deluje kot zdravstvena vzgojiteljica in izvajalka zdravstvene nege na primarni, sekundarni in terciarni ravni. Z diplomskim delom smo predvsem želeli izvedeti ali so pacienti dovolj ozaveščeni o osteoporozi, o njenih dejavnikih tveganja in načinom preprečevanja osteoporoze. Zanimalo nas je, kateri je glavni vir ozaveščanja ljudi o osteoporozi. V ta namen smo s pomočjo anketnih vprašalnikov izvedli raziskavo. Prostovoljno je sodelovalo 50 naključno izbranih pacientov iz ambulante za meritev mineralne kostne gostote in diabetološke ambulante Univerzitetnega kliničnega centra Maribor. Pri tem smo uporabili deskriptivno metodo dela. Primerjali smo znanje anketiranih med obema ambulantama. Izvedeli smo, da imajo pacienti iz ambulante za meritev mineralne kostne gostote nekoliko več znanja, kot pacienti iz diabetološke ambulante, vendar razlika ni bila velika. Skupno gledano njihovo znanje ni dovolj dobro in bi bilo potrebno izboljšati zdravstveno vzgojno delo, predvsem na primarni in sekundarni ravni. Z boljšim znanjem ljudi bi se zmanjšalo tvegaje za nastanek osteoporoze, prav tako bi se zmanjšala obolevnost pacientov. Osteoporozo je učinkoviteje preprečevati, kot pa zdraviti.Osteoporosis is a modern disease with a large number of patients and therefor presents a health, but also an economical problem. Osteoporosis is a condition that often affects women after menopouse but may be also found in elder men. Mostly it is discovered when complications already occur – when bones break. The most common injuries are broken vertebraes, the most dangerous however is a broken hip (bone). The most important test for diagnosing osteoporosis is the measuring of bone mineral density with the DXA method. In my diploma work we want to present osteoporosis as a diseease and emphasize the meaning of educational work in health care. When acquainting people with risk factors for the occurence of osteoporosis, a nurse has an important role as he or she works on the primary, secondary and tertiary level of health education. In my diploma work we want to establish to what extend people are aware of the risk factors for the occurrence of osteoporosis as well as their knowledge about the ways of preventing osteoporosis. We also want to know which is the main source of information about osteoporosis. To this purpose a reserch was conducted with quesionnaires. 50 randomly selected patients from the diabetology clinic and densitometry clinic took part in the research, in which a descriptive method was applied. After the research the patients` awarenes from both cinics was compared. My conclusion is that the patients from the densitometry clinic have a bit more knowledge about osteoporosis than the patients from the diabetology clinic, but the difference is very subtle. The patients` awareness is generaly not good enough and the health education needs to be improved, especialy on the primary and secondary level. With a greater awareness about osteoporosis there is a good chance that the risks for getting osteoporosis will decrease as well as the number of people who are affected by it. It is more efficient to prevent osteoporosis than to cure it