Knowledge and Attitudes of Family Physicians Regarding Pediatric Anaphylaxis

Background Anaphylaxis is an acute-onset, life-threatening systemic hypersensitivity reaction. Pediatric anaphylaxis (PA) is important in family health centers (FHC) due to pediatric vaccination and some treatment practices. The aim of this study was to analyze the knowledge and attitudes of family physicians regardingPA. Methods This study is a cross-sectional, survey study. The study included 321 family physicians between the ages of 24 and 65 who were actively working in FHC within the borders of Istanbul and agreed to participate in the study. The survey consisted of three sections: the first section included the family physicians’ personal and professional characteristics; the second section comprised a knowledge questionnaire designed to measure the physicians’ level of knowledge about PA; and the third section assessed the situation regarding PA in FHC. Results In this study, the mean age of the 321 participating family physicians was 38.15 ± 9.36 years; 57.3% were female, and 41.7% had between 6–15 years of professional experience. Among the participants, 47% had received training on PA, 13.1% had encountered a PA case at FHC, adrenaline was available in 97.8% of the centers, and 60.1% reported having an anaphylaxis emergency action plan in their facility. The mean score of the participants on the anaphylaxis knowledge questionnaire was 20.91 ± 5.13 (min:8, max:29) point. Participants aged 40 years or younger scored significantly higher on the anaphylaxis knowledge questionnaire compared to those over 40 years of age (p = 0.006). Similarly, those who had received training on PA (p < 0.001), those who had encountered a PA case (p = 0.021), those whose FHC had adrenaline available (p = 0.018), and those with an anaphylaxis emergency action plan in FHC (p = 0.032) also demonstrated significantly higher knowledge scores. Conclusions In this study conducted with family physicians in Istanbul, it was found that their level of knowledge regarding pediatric anaphylaxis was high. Due to the vaccination practices in pediatric age groups, physicians’ awareness and knowledge in this area are of critical importance. Therefore, it is essential to increase field-based training and scientific research on this topic.