[Knowledge of patients with type 2 diabetes about their condition in Sousse, Tunisia]

We assessed the knowledge of 404 type 2 diabetic patients about their condition in order to evaluate the quality of diabetes education in primary health care units in Sousse in 2003. We found that knowledge was satisfactory in only 59% of the patients. Their knowledge about the definition of diabetes and its pathophysiology were the 2 main areas where knowledge was lacking: the proportion of correct answers were 62.6% and 50.3% respectively. More attention should be paid to educating diabetic patients within the chronic disease care national programme

[Attitudes of teachers to tobacco smoking]

We aimed to evaluate the attitudes of teachers to tobacco smoking in Kalaa Kebira [a semi-urban region in the Tunisian Sahel]. Data from 358 of 402 teachers surveyed were obtained using a self-completed questionnaire. The mean age of the teachers was 35.7 [SD 7.9] years. The prevalence of smoking was 29.3% [51.6% of men and 3.6% of women], and 79% of smokers were addicted to nicotine according to the Fagerstrom test. About 50% of the teachers were badly-informed about the dangers of smoking and 75.2% of smoking teachers did not refrain from smoking in front of their pupils. The lack of knowledge of teachers limits their role as a model and information source in the anti-tobacco struggle. It is essential to draw up an education programme for the teaching staff