Abstract 100: Knowledge on their illness and practices among patients with adrenal insufficiency: A survey

Introduction: Averting an adrenal crisis reduces the mortality and substantial economic burden on patients and public health care facilities. So, it is imperative to educate patients on their illness. Aims and Objectives: To assess the adrenal insufficiency (AI) patients on their understanding of the illness and need for uninterrupted therapy by administering questionnaires. Results: 27 patients with AI were surveyed which included 13 females and 14 males. None of them identified all the common symptoms of AI and 4 (15%) were unaware of the symptoms. Eight patients (16%) were unaware about stress dosing. Two patients (7%) felt stress dosing is not required while 2 (7.4%) felt glucocorticoid replacement is not important for survival. Six patients (22%) had stopped therapy on their own. Three patients (11%) had hospitalization with adrenal crisis by missing medications. Conclusion: Our study shows that majority of the patients with AI have lacunae in their knowledge on illness, which raises a serious concern that needs to be addressed by continued and frequent education.