THE STUDY OF COMMUNITY AWARENESS ABOUT MULTIPLESCLEROSIS.

Objectives:- Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease, in which the ability of the nervous system to communicate is disturbed. The aim is to describe the awareness and knowledge of the community about types, symptoms & signs of MS. Methods:- A Cross sectional community base study included over three hundred visitors of Granada Center, Panorama Mall, Alqasr Mall and Hayat Mall in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2014. The study population was selected by random sampling, and the Data collection tool was a self-administered questionnaire that contained personal information and measurement of community awareness. After gathering the information; clearance, coding, entry and analysis was done. Results:- 46% of the sample are within the age between 20-30 years old and two third of them are females. 40% have heard about MS, half of them have an average knowledge about it, and know the correct cause. Around 80% of the sample did not attend any awareness campaign, and 50% mentioned that combination method (TV, radio, campaigns) is the best way for awareness. 96% want to know more about MS and 79% preferred to get the awareness from doctors. Conclusion:- The majority of people have limited knowledge about what is MS disease, and they did not attend or see MS awareness campaigns. Almost all people in this study have the desire to know more about MS and they prefer television awareness campaigns and doctors as a source of information.