Evaluation of family medicine residents' awareness regarding osteoporosis

INTRODUCTION AND AIM: Osteoporosis is a progressive, common bone disease characterized by increase in bone fragility and fracture risk due to aging and menopause. Early diagnosis and thus prevention of fractures are of importance. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the level of osteoporosis awareness among physicians. In this study, we aimed to evaluate family medicine residents' osteoporosis awareness level and to increase their knowledge by raising awareness on this issue. METHOD: Our study is a descriptive cross-sectional study, conducted between 01.12.2022 and 31.12.2022. We aimed to reach all family medicine residents in Turkey. A total of 265 family medicine residents whom agreed and completed the questionnaire were included in the study. The questionnaire, including demographic information prepared by researchers and Osteoporosis Awareness Scale Turkish Version, was administered via online platforms. The data were recorded in SPSS 20.0 (SPSS Inc, Chicago,IL,USA) program and statistically analyzed. RESULTS: The study was conducted with 265 participants, 119 (44.9%) of which were male and 146 (55.1%) were female, with a mean age of 32.06±6.83 (SD). Participants' mean Osteoporosis Awareness Scale Score was 83.21±13.16 (SD) (min:27, max:108), charactarized as medium-high level. Upon evaluation of responses, a statistically significant positive correlation between age, duration of medical profession, duration of being a family physician and Osteoporosis Awareness Scale Scores (p<0.05) was seen. Also, Osteoporosis Awareness Scale score of participants', stating they received adequate education about osteoporosis before graduation was statistically significantly higher (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Osteoporosis is preventable by lifestyle changes and screening, which can be achieved by ensuring awareness of family medicine residents working in primary health care services. We conclude that family medicine residents should receive more training on osteoporosis and the family medicine residency curriculum should be updated accordingly.