PUBLIC AWARENESS REGARDING EARLY SIGN OF MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION IN URBAN COMMUNITY: A CROSS SECTIONAL DESCRIPTIVE STUDY

Abstract

ABSTRCT

Background: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally, along with coronary artery diseases (CAD) contributing to the half of cases. The foremost complication of CAD is myocardial infarction (MI).The clinical results of the MI is time- dependent, therefore it is crucial for the general public to be familiar with the early symptom of MI. Objective: This study aimed to assess the knowledge of early signs of MI in urban community. Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted among the general population between 18 to 75 years of age at Karachi. By using OpenEpi software, the calculated minimum sample size was 384. Data collection was commenced from August, 2025 to October, 2025. A convenient sampling technique was used to gather the data. Written informed consent was provided along with the qestionnare in English and Urdu language. The data was analyzed by using SPSS version 27.0. Results: Among the 800 participants, most were young adults, predominantly female, and without chronic illness. Over half demonstrated low awareness of early (MI) symptoms, while only a small proportion showed high awareness. Overall, 51.5% had low awareness and 33.8% had moderate awareness, indicating substantial gaps in knowledge of early MI warning signs. Conclusion: The findings of the study highlighted a low level of awareness regarding early signs of MI among the urban Pakistani population. More than half of the study respondent displays low level of awareness and showed hesitancy in seeking medical services even if they know the alarming signs of MI.