Knowledge and attitudes towards genetic testing, a 2 year follow-up study in patients with astma, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.

Background: Scientific knowledge on genetics is growing fast, resulting in farreaching implications for the possibilities and choices in health care and in daily life. Especially for patients with chronic diseases that (partially) have a genetic aetiology, such as asthma, diabetes mellitus (DM), and cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and their families and offspring. Adequate knowledge regarding the genetic component of diseases, as well as personal attitudes towards DNA-testing, are major determinants of optimal utilization of genetic testing. Methods: Patients with asthma, DM (type II) and CVD were selected from the Panel of Patients with Chronic Diseases. In the first survey on genetic testing (April 2002) data from 577 patients could be analysed. Of these patients, 398 also participated in the second survey on genetic testing in April 2004. Results: Most genetic knowledge relates to associations between genes and diseases, least is known about associations between genes, chromosomes, cells, and body. Multivariate regression analyses revealed a younger age, a higher educational level, and the perception of own illness as hereditary as most important determinants of factual knowledge. Their perceived knowledge on DNA-testing has not been increased since 2002. Attitudes towards genetic testing hardly changed either. Most positive are patients about general subjects covered by rather distant statements, many patients, however, are still worried about the consequences for taking out insurances. Less perceived medical genetic knowledge and more perceived social genetic knowledge results in a more reserved attitude towards genetic testing.Conclusions: Advanced developments in scientific knowledge in the field of medical genetics are not accompanied by increased knowledge in patients with asthma, DM type II, and CVD. Their attitudes towards DNA-testing have also hardly changed in a period of 2 years. The finding that more perceived knowledge of social consequences results in a more reserved attitude can be considered an indicator for the necessity of a social debate on these possible consequences. (aut.ref.)