Knowledge of Alzheimer’s disease and its relationship with attitude towards genetic testing for the disease: a survey of the general public in Bangladesh

Abstract

Purpose: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a multifactorial neurodegenerative brain disorder that affects approximately 5.3 million people in the United States, including nearly half of the population aged 85 and up. It has become a devastating condition with a huge societal impact, both in terms of financial costs and the aging population. The objective of this study was to evaluate knowledge and attitude towards genetic testing of AD. Method: A cross sectional survey was conducted by distributing a goggle form contacting pretested questions. The data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel and GraphPad prism software for calculating descriptive statistics. Result: A total 209 responses were collected within 1.5 months’ time period. Among the 209 responders 169 participants were below the age of thirty and 40 participants were above above the age of thirty, where highest number of participants were between ages 20 to 30. By doing T test using GraphPad prism we saw a significant difference in knowledge level between the below and above 30 age groups. Conclusion: From this study we concluded that knowledge regarding AD and awareness of genetic screening of AD is still quite poor. Therefore, proper information and awareness regarding genetic testing of AD should be spread.