Physicians and Patients’ Awareness of Screening Tests for the First Trimester of Pregnancy

Background: Pregnant women should be under evaluation through screening tests during 11 - 14 weeks of pregnancy. Increased awareness level of physicians is of great importance in referring pregnant women for screening in the first trimester of pregnancy. In addition, patients’ awareness is of great importance for early discovery of chromosomal abnormalities and fetal mental retardation. Verification of these anomalies using more diagnostic tests can lead to early awareness and prohibition from the birth of malformed infants. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the extent of awareness of physicians and patients from the first trimester screening tests. Patients and Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 100 physicians (65 general physicians and 37 gynecologists) as well as 385 females, 18 - 45 years old, referred to the Womenʹs Clinic of Ahvaz Imam Khomeini Hospital participated. Two separate questionnaires containing two demographic and profile sections and questions related to general knowledge were used in this study. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency distribution, average, standard deviation) and SPSS version 18. Results: The average age of patients was 29 (18 - 45 years) and 38 ± 6 (24 - 52). A total of 81 patients (21%) were illiterate, 217 (56.4%) had diploma or below, and 87 (22.6%) had higher education; 234 and 151 participants were respectively employed and unemployed. In a comparison of patients’ awareness of the first trimester screening tests, 70.4%, 17.4% and 12.2% had poor, average and good scores, respectively. In addition, in a survey on physicians, 24%, 46%, and 30% achieved poor, average and good scores, respectively. A significant relationship existed between the patientsʹ awareness and their job and education (P = 0.01); in the physicians’ group, gynecologists had higher awareness due to the existing rules. Conclusions: The results showed that awareness of patients and a few doctors about the first trimester screening tests was respectively weak and middle level, showing that there is an urgent need for greater awareness in this field, regarding the importance of detecting some chromosomal abnormalities prior to birth.