Identifying knowledge deficiencies in genetics education among medical students and interns in Saudi Arabia- A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Understanding genetics is crucial for medical students, particularly in Saudi Arabia, where genetic disorders are prevalent owing to high rates of consanguineous marriages. This knowledge is essential for the early detection, prevention, and management of genetic disorders, and for incorporating medical genetics and genomics into patient care. This study aimed to assess the current state of genetics knowledge among medical students and interns across Saudi Arabia and to identify knowledge gaps in genetics. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted between August and September 2023 involving 732 medical students from all regions of Saudi Arabia. The participants completed a validated questionnaire assessing their knowledge of basic genetics, genetic inheritance, genetic testing, and clinical genetics. RESULT: Over 60% of medical students and interns reported that they considered themselves to have only slight knowledge in all areas of genetics. The results revealed a general lack of medical genetic understanding among students and interns, particularly regarding genetic inheritance and testing. For genetic inheritance, slight knowledge was found in 65.2% of pre-clinical, 60.1% of clinical, and 53.2% of interns, with significant differences between groups (p < 0.001). In genetic testing, 75.4% of pre-clinical, 83.9% of clinical, and 90.6% of interns showed slight knowledge, with significant differences across stages (p = 0.021). This study also found that lectures, genetics laboratories, and problem-solving sessions were the preferred resources for learning genetics. CONCLUSION: The current study revealed a notable deficiency in the understanding of medical genetics among medical students and interns in Saudi Arabia, particularly regarding genetic inheritance and testing. This is consistent with previous research highlighting the widespread lack of genetics knowledge among medical students. Integrating more comprehensive genetics education, especially during the clinical years, could improve students' preparedness and confidence in managing genetic disorders. These findings highlight the critical need for curriculum development to equip future physicians with the essential skills for managing genetic disorders.

Prevalence of Stress Urinary Incontinence and Risk Factors among Saudi Females.

Background and Objectives: Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is involuntary urine leakage upon effort or physical exertion, sneezing, or coughing, and it is the most prevalent type of urinary incontinence (UI) in women. We aimed to estimate the prevalence of SUI and its risk factors among Saudi females. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between March 2022 and July 2022, with a total of 842 respondents. We included Saudi females over the age of 20 years. Data were collected through an online questionnaire distributed to the target group and analyzed using SPSS software. Results: The prevalence of SUI was found to be 3.3% among Saudi women. Moreover, only 41.8% of the participants had at least one pregnancy; the majority had five or more pregnancies (29%). According to our findings, the majority of the participants diagnosed with SUI had the following risk factors: increased age, widowhood, a family history of SUI, and a history of pregnancy. The results revealed that the odds of SUI increased among Saudi females with a family history of SUI by 19.68-fold compared with those who had no family history of SUI, and this was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The prevalence of SUI among Saudi females was found to be relatively low. The above-listed associated factors should be considered in future research and interventions.