The knowledge and attitudes of the primary care physicians on developmental dysplasia of the hip

OBJECTIVE: For the prevention and early diagnosis of developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), a detailed clinical screening of the newborn performed by a primary care (PC) physician is recommended as a standard practice throughout the most western countries. We aimed to determine the knowledge and attitudes of the PC physicians towards DDH, and to develop further educational and training programs, according to the results obtained from the study.

METHODS: The study was a pre- and post- test with a cross-sectional design. In winter of 2005, the participants included 102 PC physicians from 20 primary health care centers in Kahramanmaras, Turkey. A structured questionnaire was prepared consisting of 28 statements on medical, practical, and traditional knowledge and attitudes concerning DDH.

RESULTS: There was a significant difference between the pre-test (71.47 ± 9.92) and post-test scores (78.85 ± 12.86) of participants (p=0.000). Of the participants, 83 (81.4%) before, and 93 (91.2%) after the lecture, thought that DDH is a preventable disease. Prior to the lecture, only 27.5% of the physicians were aware of the wrong traditional attitudes that are considered as risk factors for DDH.

CONCLUSION: The knowledge and attitudes of PC physicians on DDH needs to be improved by providing continuous education programmes.