FACTORS RELATED TO SELF-PROTECTION BEHAVIOR OF STROKE WITH CONTROLLED HYPERTENTION PATIENTS DANCHANG DISTRICT, SUPHANBURI PROVINCE

Abstract

                This cross-sectional survey study aimed to examine stroke prevention behaviors and identify factors associated with stroke self-prevention behaviors in patients with controlled hypertension. Participants were 353 patients with controlled hypertension. Data were collected by questionnaires and analyzed by descriptive statistics including frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation, as well as Chi-square test.

             1. The findings revealed that the participants had the overall stroke self-prevention behaviors at a moderate level (84.1%).

              2. There were significant factors associated with participants’ stroke self-prevention behaviors, consisting of age (c² = 8.268, p < .05 ), knowledge about stroke (c² = 3.985, p < .05 ), stroke risk perception (c² = 11.962, p < .001 ), severe stroke perception (c² = 5.048 ,p < .05), barriers to stroke prevention perception (c² = 11.684, p < .01), and self-efficacy of stroke prevention perception (c²  = 9.427,p < .01). There were no correlation between other factors and participants’ stroke self-prevention behaviors, covering gender, education level, occupation, income, economic status, co-existing hypertension, perception of benefits of stroke self-prevention behaviors and encouraging factors to stroke prevention.

                It could be suggested that sub-district health promoting hospitals should provide health education related to risk and severity of stroke, as well as reducing perception of barriers to stroke prevention. The activities linked to encouraging adjusting or changing self-prevention behaviors should be organized to improve proper behaviors of hypertension patients and decrease complications of stroke in community.