Do women over 45 have adequate awareness of hypothyroidism? V1.1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Do women over 45 have adequate awareness of hypothyroidism and its associated symptoms?
IRAS ID
144874
Contact name
William Coppola
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Research summary
This study will explore whether women over 45 have adequate awareness of hypothyroidism and its associated symptoms. Hypothyroidism is a state where the thyroid gland, situated in the neck, does not produce enough of its hormones. It can have a range of causes and has an especially high prevalence in older women, with varied symptoms which range in severity. Many people are untreated for the condition and may attribute symptoms to ageing or other issues, while treatment would be simple and often effective in improving their quality of life. Therefore it would be useful to know how much those most at risk know about hypothyroidism and what their perceptions about it are.
The cross-sectional research will be undertaken with the use of a postal questionnaire. Roughly 500 women over 45, but under 70, who are registered at one general practice in north London will be invited to participate in the letter, asking them to return the questionnaire if they agree to take part. The questionnaire has been designed for the study and is expected to take five to ten minutes to complete.
Data from the study will be analysed quantitatively and will include looking at whether participants could identify symptoms that are associated with the condition from a list of various symptoms. It will also question whether participants feel they have an understanding of hypothyroidism and whether they perceive it to be an important or serious problem. Levels of awareness will be judged from these questions and factors that may influence this within the sample will be explored. This may include age, level of education and ethnicity of the participant. Looking at these factors is not the primary goal of this study but could influence future research and targeting awareness campaigns in the future.
REC name
London - Riverside Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/0172
Date of REC Opinion
17 Jan 2014
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion