الفهرس 
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Abstract
Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder of multiple etiologies, characterized by chronic hyperglycemia with disturbance of carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism resulting from defects in insulin secretion, insulin action or both. It is a chronic life threatening condition that depends on medications, diet and lifestyle modification to prevent long term complications of the disease.
It is expected that patients with the greatest diabetic knowledge will have a better understanding of the disease and have a better impact on the progression of the disease and its’ complications.
The aim of this work was to identify the level of knowledge of diabetic patients about their disease, its related specific self care practices, and to reveal some factors that are related to the level of knowledge of the studied patients.
To achieve these aims a cross-sectional descriptive approach was selected .The study sample included 100 diabetic patients of both sexes registered in Elraml Family Health Unit in Alexandria.
The results showed that:
• Females constituted 54% of the sample.
• The mean age of the studied population was 50.74 ± 14.52 years.
• Nine tenths of the diabetic patients 90% were ever married.
• The most encountered educational level was university education and above (38%).Primary education accounted for 13% of the patients and the least encountered educational level was the illiterate patients (6%).
• The majority of the studied patients (78%) were working.
• Oral Hypoglycemic medication was the treatment regimen followed by about two thirds of patients (69%).
• About two fifths of the studied patients (39%) had history of hospitalization due to diabetic complications.
• Coronary heart disease accounted for the majority of the recorded complication (19%) and the least encountered complications are cerebrovascular stroke (2%) and peripheral neuropathy (2%).
• About half of the patients (51%) follow up their disease at family medicine only.
• The majority of diabetic patients (76%) had follow up once every month and only 3%had once every three months.
• About three quarters of patients 77% obtain their knowledge about diabetes from physicians and nurses.