Health literacy and medication adherence in adolescents

Area of Science:

• Adolescent Health
• Health Literacy Research
• Medication Adherence Studies

Background:

• Medication adherence is crucial for managing chronic conditions in adolescents.
• Health literacy, the ability to understand health information, is a known factor influencing adherence.
• However, other factors may also significantly impact adolescents' ability to adhere to medication regimens.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between health literacy levels and medication adherence in adolescents.
• To explore the influence of other factors, such as chronic illness and learning disabilities, on medication adherence.

Main Methods:

• A sample of 138 adolescents (ages 12-21) was recruited from an urban adolescent health center.
• Health literacy was measured using the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine-TEEN (REALM-TEEN).
• Medication adherence was assessed using the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS), with regression trees used to analyze interrelated effects.

Main Results:

• A significant positive correlation was found between poorer medication adherence (higher ARMS scores) and the presence of a learning disability (P = .041) and chronic illness (P = .003).
• Health literacy (REALM-TEEN scores) was not significantly correlated with medication adherence (P = .069).
• Adolescents with both a chronic illness and a learning disability exhibited worse medication adherence, independent of their health literacy levels.

Conclusions:

• A substantial proportion of adolescents, nearly one-quarter, reported learning disabilities associated with poorer medication adherence.
• These findings indicate that cognitive factors beyond basic reading ability, such as those related to learning disabilities, play a critical role in medication adherence.
• Further research should explore these cognitive factors to improve adherence strategies for adolescents.