Development of a Measure of Hepatitis C-alcohol Knowledge

Area of Science:

• Hepatology
• Addiction Medicine
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Alcohol use exacerbates liver disease progression in hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients, increasing risks of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.
• Existing measures for assessing patient knowledge regarding HCV and alcohol interactions are lacking.
• Understanding the relationship between HCV and alcohol is crucial for patient management and outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a knowledge scale measuring the relationship between hepatitis C virus (HCV) and alcohol use.
• To assess changes in HCV-alcohol knowledge following an intervention.
• To determine if improved HCV-alcohol knowledge correlates with reduced alcohol use severity.

Main Methods:

• Development of a 7-item HCV-alcohol Knowledge Scale.
• Enrollment of 53 HCV patients with risky alcohol use in a treatment study.
• Utilized generalized estimating equations (GEE) regression for longitudinal data analysis, accounting for attrition and non-independence.

Main Results:

• HCV-alcohol knowledge significantly increased at 3 months post-intervention (p=0.005) and showed a trend at 6 months (p=0.074).
• Higher educational attainment and White race were associated with higher baseline HCV-alcohol knowledge.
• Increases in HCV-alcohol knowledge scores significantly predicted greater reductions in alcohol use severity (p=0.027).

Conclusions:

• The 7-item HCV-alcohol Knowledge Scale effectively measures changes in patient understanding of HCV and alcohol's effects.
• The scale serves as a valuable research and clinical tool for assessing knowledge and its impact on behavior.
• Improved HCV-alcohol knowledge is linked to decreased alcohol consumption, supporting targeted educational interventions.