The Impact of Health Literacy on Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Patients With Diabetes Receiving Care in an Inner-City Hospital

doi:10.1016/S0027-9684(15)30469-7

Journal of the National Medical Association

Volume 102, Issue 1, January 2010, Pages 5-9

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0027-9684(15)30469-7 Get rights and content

Background

: Self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) is considered to be 1 of the cornerstones of diabetes self-management. It is unclear whether inadequate health literacy affects SMBG.

Objective

: The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between health literacy and SMBG.

Methods

: This was a cross-sectional survey of 189 patients with diabetes, aged 18 to 65 years, receiving care in a large urban, public health care setting. We measured health literacy using the shortened version of the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults. The diabetes care profile was used to determine the use of self-monitoring of blood glucose.

Results

: Most (60.9%) of the survey participants were assessed as functionally health literate. The majority (90.9%) of the study participants reported testing their blood sugar at least once daily. Although adequate health literacy was associated with recording of blood sugar testing (p = .049), we found no statistically significant relationship between health literacy and the frequency of SMBG. Persons self-reporting having diabetes for more than 10 years were less likely to self-monitor blood glucose (odds ratio, 0.33; 95% CI, 0.11 -0.99).

Conclusions

: SMBG frequency is not independently associated with health literacy, but SMBG result recording is noted among patients with inadequate literacy.

References (0)

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Citation Excerpt :
Table 2 summarizes the methodological quality of each paper. The cross-sectional design that most studies applied limits interpretation of the causality between HL, determinants and self-management [18–21,23–27]. Because the beneficial effect of self-management on sociocognitive determinants (e.g. knowledge and self-efficacy) over time is feasible, there could be a reciprocal relationship that can only be evaluated in prospective cohort studies.
To review studies on the association between health literacy (HL), diabetes self-management and possible mediating variables.
We systematically searched for empirical studies in PubMed. Findings were ordered by a HL framework that outlines routes between HL, sociocognitive determinants and health actions.
Of the 11 relevant studies, three reported a significant positive association between HL and specific diabetes self-management domains. Ten studies investigated the association between HL and knowledge (n = 8), beliefs (n = 2), self-efficacy (n = 3) and/or social support (n = 1). Significant associations were found between HL and knowledge (n = 6), self-efficacy (n = 1) and social support (n = 1). Of the three studies evaluating the effect of these sociocognitive variables on diabetes self-management, only one found proof for a mediating variable (social support) in the pathway between HL and self-management.
There is only limited evidence for a significant association between HL and diabetes self-management, and for the mediating role of sociocognitive variables in this pathway.
Longitudinal studies, including HL, diabetes self-management and potential mediators, are needed to substantiate possible associations between these variables. Such research is essential to enable evidence-based development of interventions to increase adequate and sustainable self-management in diabetic patients with low HL.
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2022, Nutrients
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Original communicationThe Impact of Health Literacy on Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Patients With Diabetes Receiving Care in an Inner-City Hospital

Background

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Original communication
The Impact of Health Literacy on Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose in Patients With Diabetes Receiving Care in an Inner-City Hospital