Predictors of Low-Level Disease-Specific Knowledge in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Abstract

Sang Hee Lee,1,2 Haejung Lee,3 Yun Seong Kim,4 Hye-Kyung Park,5,6 Min Ki Lee,5,6 Ki Uk Kim5,6 1Department of Internal Medicine, Wonkwang University Sanbon Hospital, Gunpo-si, Republic of Korea; 2Department of Internal Medicine, Wonkwang University College of Medicine, Iksan, Republic of Korea; 3Department of Nursing, Pusan National University College of Nursing, Yangsan-si, Republic of Korea; 4Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Yangsan-si, Republic of Korea; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan, Republic of Korea; 6Medical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan, Republic of KoreaCorrespondence: Ki Uk KimDepartment of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, 179 Gudeok-ro, Seo-gu, Busan 49241, Republic of KoreaTel [phone]Fax [phone]Email [email protected]: Disease-specific knowledge is associated with outcomes of patients, but the knowledge level of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients is known to be low.Objective: We measured the level of disease-specific knowledge and defined factors associated with poor disease knowledge in COPD patients.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was performed in five hospitals in South Korea. At enrolment, all patients completed the Bristol COPD Knowledge Questionnaire (BCKQ), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Personal Resource Questionnaire (PRQ), St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The data were analyzed via linear regression to identify factors associated with low-level knowledge of COPD.Results: A total of 245 COPD patients were enrolled in this study. The mean total BCKQ score was 28.1 (SD, 7.4). The lowest scores were seen for items exploring knowledge of “Oral steroids” and “Inhaled steroids”. In univariate analysis, higher level of education (r = 0.17), low income (r = 0.13), the post-bronchodilator FEV1, % predicted (r = − 0.24), the post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio (r = − 0.13), SWLS (r = 0.15), PRQ (r = 0.16), SF-36 MCS (r = 0.13), HADS-A (r = − 0.17), and HADS-D (r = − 0.28) scores correlated with the BCKQ score (all p < 0.05). FEV1 (r = − 0.25, p < 0.001) and HADS-D score (r = − 0.29, p < 0.001) were significantly associated with the total BCKQ score in multivariate analysis.Conclusion: Our Korean patients with COPD lacked knowledge on oral and inhaled steroid treatments. In particular, patients with higher-level lung function and/or depressive symptoms exhibited poorer disease-specific knowledge; such patients may require additional education.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, disease knowledge, lung function, depression

Keywords

• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• disease knowledge
• lung function
• depression