Margaret C. Fang|Edward L. Machtinger|Frances Wang|Dean Schillinger
Health literacy and anticoagulation-related outcomes among patients taking warfarin
University of California, San Francisco|University of California, San Francisco|San Francisco General Hospital|San Francisco General Hospital
little known whether health literacy affects anticoagulationrelated outcomesto assess health literacy associated warfarin knowledge adherence warfarin control measured international normalized ratio inrsurveypatients taking warfarin anticoagulation clinichealth literacy measured using shortform test functional health literacy adults stofhla dichotomized limited score 0 22 adequate score 23 36 asked patients answer questions relating warfarin therapy used multivariable logistic regression assess whether health literacy associated incorrect answers also assessed whether health literacy associated nonadherence warfarin well time therapeutic inr rangebilingual research assistants administered survey stofhla 179 anticoagulated english spanishspeaking patients limited health literacy associated incorrect answers questions warfarins mechanism adjusted odds ratio 48 13 176 sideeffects 64 23 180 medication interactions 25 11 55 frequency monitoring 27 11 67 adjusting age sex raceethnicity education cognitive impairment years warfarin however limited health literacy significantly associated missing warfarin doses 3 months 09 04 20 proportion persontime therapeutic inr range 10 07 14limited health literacy associated deficits warfarinrelated knowledge selfreported adherence warfarin inr control efforts concentrate investigating alternative means educating patients management potential risks anticoagulation