School of Medicine and Health Sciences Poster Presentations

Poster Number

161

Document Type

Poster

DOI

10.13140/RG.2.2.12911.53923

Publication Date

3-2016

Abstract

Background:

Dietary sodium restriction is a mainstay of disease management and self-care in heart failure (HF). Heart failure education programs that include recommendations on limiting sodium intake are fairly variable across centers and populations. A clear assessment is lacking on efficacy of such programs in enhancing levels of patient understanding regarding recommendations on sodium intake and knowledge of sodium content in commonly consumed food items. This pilot study was designed to assess the knowledge pertaining to sodium-restricted diets in underserved, at-risk patients with chronic, stable HF at an urban, academic center.

Methods:

Adult English-speaking patients with either stable, chronic HF reduced ejection fraction (HFREF) or HF preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF) were included. Baseline characteristics such as demographics, knowledge of HF self-care including understanding of sodium intake and related health implications were collected. Subsequently, a pictorial survey was administered that asked participants to categorize food items into high-, medium- or low-sodium based on the FDA-recommended daily sodium intake of 2.4g. Unordered Pearson chi-square tests were performed for differences between each group.

Results:

A total of 24 participants (mean age 57.3, 58.3% male, 75% HFREF) participated in the survey. Seventy-five percent of participants had a high-school or equivalent level education and 25% had an advanced degree. Participants were able to accurately categorize foods into high-, moderate-, or low-sodium categories 74%, 36% and 63% of the time, respectively (respective 95% confidence intervals 0.69-0.79, 0.29-0.43, 0.56-0.63). These percentages differed significantly from each other (p

Conclusions:

Understanding of dietary sodium intake varies significantly among HF patients. Despite intensive HF education, patients were not able to accurately identify sodium content in appropriate categories. Further research is needed on barriers to understanding of dietary education and its effect on outcomes.

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Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Open Access

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Presented at: GW Research Days 2016

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Dietary Sodium Intake: Perceptions of an Urban Heart Failure Population

Background:

Dietary sodium restriction is a mainstay of disease management and self-care in heart failure (HF). Heart failure education programs that include recommendations on limiting sodium intake are fairly variable across centers and populations. A clear assessment is lacking on efficacy of such programs in enhancing levels of patient understanding regarding recommendations on sodium intake and knowledge of sodium content in commonly consumed food items. This pilot study was designed to assess the knowledge pertaining to sodium-restricted diets in underserved, at-risk patients with chronic, stable HF at an urban, academic center.

Methods:

Adult English-speaking patients with either stable, chronic HF reduced ejection fraction (HFREF) or HF preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF) were included. Baseline characteristics such as demographics, knowledge of HF self-care including understanding of sodium intake and related health implications were collected. Subsequently, a pictorial survey was administered that asked participants to categorize food items into high-, medium- or low-sodium based on the FDA-recommended daily sodium intake of 2.4g. Unordered Pearson chi-square tests were performed for differences between each group.

Results:

A total of 24 participants (mean age 57.3, 58.3% male, 75% HFREF) participated in the survey. Seventy-five percent of participants had a high-school or equivalent level education and 25% had an advanced degree. Participants were able to accurately categorize foods into high-, moderate-, or low-sodium categories 74%, 36% and 63% of the time, respectively (respective 95% confidence intervals 0.69-0.79, 0.29-0.43, 0.56-0.63). These percentages differed significantly from each other (p

Conclusions:

Understanding of dietary sodium intake varies significantly among HF patients. Despite intensive HF education, patients were not able to accurately identify sodium content in appropriate categories. Further research is needed on barriers to understanding of dietary education and its effect on outcomes.

 

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