الفهرس 
IntroductionOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
•Introduction: Rheumatic autoimmune diseases are pathological conditions that are defined as an abnormal autoimmune response. Providing the general public and patients with good quality information is an important strategy in the management of chronic diseases.•Aim of the work: Evaluate the awareness, knowledge and attitude of the general public regarding the common rheumatic diseases in Egypt.•Subjects and methods: This study included 3000 people from the general public from 18 to 70 years of age from 4 Egyptian governorates (Dakahlia, Damietta, Sohag and Qena) and the AKARSCO questionnaire was completed by the participants.•Results: The overall score of the participants regarding the level of general knowledge of rheumatic diseases is bad, the overall score of the participants regarding the level of general knowledge of rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, osteoarthritis and gout is bad, and the general level of the participants regarding the attitude towards rheumatic diseases is unsatisfactory.
•Discussion: The results of this study are consistent with many previous studies regarding the general public’s lack of awareness, knowledge, and attitude towards common rheumatic diseases, with some differences with these studies regarding factors affecting awareness such as education, work, marital status, and residence.•Conclusion: The general public’s awareness, knowledge and attitude towards common rheumatic diseases are poor in Egypt.•Recommendations: There is a need for more studies that include more governorates and more rheumatic diseases and conduct educational campaigns to improve public knowledge of rheumatic diseases.