Abstract
Context: Diabetes-related retinopathy (DR), the most common complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), is a severe and preventable cause of visual loss and blindness that has been reported to be the fourth leading cause of blindness among four million cases globally. Aims: This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of fourth- and fifth-year medical students concerning patients with DR. Methods and Materials: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at a College of Medicine in Saudi Arabia, in November 2018, and comprised 153 fourth- and fifth-year medical students of both sexes. Participants were required to complete a previously validated hard copy questionnaire. Results: In total, > 50% of participants showed good knowledge of DR (poor participant knowledge, n = 65, 42.5%). We found 16 (10.5%) participants had poor attitudes to DR compared to 137 (89.5%) of participants with good attitudes, and 32 (20.9%) participants showed poor practices compared to 121 (79.1%) participants showing good practices. There was a statistically significant difference between the sexes and the level of practice (P = 0.021). Conclusions: More than 50% of participants in our study showed good knowledge concerning DR, with excellent attitudes and practices. Moreover, participants' age was identified as a significant factor affecting practice regarding DR. More targeted education is required to improve their knowledge base in regard to DR. Medical faculties have a significant role in the education of medical students to ensure greater awareness of DR.