Awareness and attitudes of orthopedic surgeons and pediatricians about chronic non-bacterial osteomyelitis: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE

Chronic nonbacterial osteomyelitis (CNO) is a rare autoinflammatory disease affecting the bone in which, diagnostic delays are common due to lack of physician awareness. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge of orthopedic surgeons and pediatricians about CNO and to investigate the effect of professional experience on this process.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

This study was conducted between January-February 2025 using a 13-item online questionnaire comprising multiple-choice questions with clearly defined correct and incorrect answers. The questionnaire consisted of two main categories. The first category included questions regarding the clinicians' areas of specialization, professional experience, and training needs. The second category aimed to assess clinicians' knowledge levels about CNO. For each participant, the number and rate of correct and incorrect responses were calculated.

RESULTS

The questionnaire was sent to a total of 551 clinicians and 244 of them (44.2%) (130 orthopedic surgeons, 114 pediatricians) completed the questionnaire. Of the 61 items, orthopedic surgeons had a median of 30 correct responses (26-35), while pediatricians had a median of 32 (28-36) (p = 0.023). The rate of giving the correct answers to the questions increased with the professional experience of the clinicians (p = 0.02). 116 (47.5%) clinicians stated that they didn't think to have sufficient knowledge about CNO and 212 (86.8%) clinicians stated that they'd like to participate in a training about CNO.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates that both orthopedic surgeons and pediatricians still have significant knowledge gaps regarding CNO. Although the current level of awareness remains limited in both groups, they appear willing to acquire further knowledge. These findings highlight the need for focused educational programs to improve patient care.