Awareness of Saudi diabetic adults about complications of diabetes mellitus in Hail region

Background: Saudi Arabia has the highest prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus which is 32.8% and the anticipated prevalence will be 40.37% in 2025. This study intended to estimate the level of awareness of diabetic adults about complications of diabetes mellitus in the Hail region. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Hail region, via self-administered questionnaires for 230 participants. Diabetic patients of age 15 years or older were included. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 22. Results: Of the total, 20.9% had been diagnosed between 1 to 4 years ago, 27.8% within 5 to 10 years ago; while 37.8% had been diabetics for longer than 10 years. 87.4% of participants believed that diabetes mellitus has serious complications and 11.3% disagreed. 85.7% of participants agreed that high levels of HbA1c for a long time can lead to more serious complications, while 1.7% disagreed and 12.6% expressed a lack of knowledge. Most respondents (93%) thought that there is a relation between retinopathy to diabetes mellitus, 1.3% believed there is none and 5.7% did not know. 89.1% believed that patients should have a follow-up for retinopathy but 0.9% disagreed and 10% were not sure. 87.4% expressed that DM can cause neuropathy while 11.3% expressed a lack of knowledge. 1.3% denied such a relationship. 95.2 % agreed that controlling blood sugar would decrease the complications, while 3.9% were not sure. Only 0.9% disagreed. Conclusion: Patients demonstrated a good level of awareness about diabetes mellitus complications in comparison to other populations.