Poor public awareness on the etiology of chest pain in Jordan

The objective of the study is to assess the level of public awareness on the causes of chest pain in Jordan. A total of 4194 adults [2086 males, 2108 females] from various regions of Jordan were interviewed during the period of July -September2004. The range of the age for the sample was 18- 86 years with a mean of 26.08 +/- 0.16 [SEM] years. Each individual was asked to answer a total of 16 specific questions on the causes of chest pain. Moreover, a brief comment was provided to each person on the disorders mentioned in the questionnaire. A score out of 16 was used to determine the level of awareness on this issue. Our results showed that the overall public awareness mean score was 5.05 +/- 0.09 which was poor according to the study scale. The highest level of awareness in individuals with health-related [9.35 +/- 1.29] and health-unrelated [3.69 +/- 0.51] jobs was detected in the age range of 50- 57 which represents only 3.5% of the sample. When compared with other ethnicities, Jordanians has the lowest percentage [5.2%] of "excellent" scores and almost the highest percentage [18%] of "extremely poor" scores. In all age ranges [except> 57 years], the scores on the level of awareness were significantly higher in individuals with health-related jobs than persons engaged in health-unrelated jobs. It is concluded that public awareness on chest pain in Jordan is poor. Therefore, community education campaigns should be initiated to increase public awareness on the clinical manifestations of chest pain

Awareness and frequency of potential side effects on nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs among the Jordanian patient population

To investigate patient awareness of the proper use and frequency of side effects in nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [NSAIDs] users in Jordan. This study was a prospective 8 question interview of subjects purchasing medications, during randomized 4 hour/day pharmacy visits over a one month study period [March 2002]. Two hundred and twelve patients were included in this study. Two community pharmacies located in Irbid were chosen. The other 2 were Albashir Hospital Pharmacy and Prince Basma Hospital pharmacy. Overall NSAIDs use during last year was 69%: Diclofenac was the most used NSAID. The majority of patients [58%] reported having side effects upon NSAIDs-use; gastrointestinal upset was the most frequently reported side effect. Patients' awareness regarding proper NSAIDs use was poor, and pharmacist role in counseling was inadequate. However, user ability to discover the most common side effect to the drug seemed not to be affected. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use awareness and knowledge of probable serious side effects and how to handle them was not adequate. This probably reflected on high incidence of side effects. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are available on prescription as well as over the counter drugs. Pharmacist involvement in education of patients using them is highly recommended and much needed to help decrease frequency of side effects