Knowledge of Tuberculosis among Parents/Guardians of Children with Tuberculosis Attending the Outpatient Department of a Tertiary Care Hospital in Karachi

The purpose of the study was to investigate the knowledge and misconcepts for Tuberculosis of the parents and guardians of the children who have this disease. The study is conducted at the outpatient department of the National Institute of Child Health, Karachi. It encompassed 173 parents/guardians who are accompanying their children who are suffering from Tuberculosis and are attending tertiary care hospitals for children in Karachi. A structured questionnaire covering most of the aspects of Tuberculosis was used to collect the data. Descriptive statistics were obtained in terms of frequency percentages. Out of 173 parents/guardians who were included in the study, 128 (73.98%) answered correctly regarding the management and investigative aspects of Tuberculosis. However, only 81 (46.8%) knew the etiology and spread of the disease. The most common misconception was that the spread of the disease is due to sharing utensils and by eating together. In comparison to parents, guardians had poorer overall knowledge. Females, accounting for 102 (59%) interviewees, had poorer knowledge than males, 70 (40.5%). The relation with the adult contact in the same household was 71.6%. The majority of the children 143 (82.7%) belonged to the slum areas of Karachi and 50 (29%) were a part of the Pashto speaking population. Knowledge of the parents/guardians regarding management and investigation aspects of the disease was good in comparison with other studies.