Gender differences in self-care maintenance and its associations among patients with chronic heart failure

To identify the gender differences in self-care maintenance and its associations among chronic heart failure patients using the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills model.

Two hundred and ten patients (54.0% female) with chronic heart failure participated in this cross-sectional study. Self-care, knowledge of heart failure, social support and illness perception were measured using the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index, the questionnaire of heart failure knowledge, the Perceived Social Support Scale, and the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire, respectively.

Mean scores for self-care maintenance were 51.4 ± 14.8 in men and 55.6 ± 14.1 in women (t = -2.066, P < 0.05). Associated factors of self-care maintenance were social support and self-care confidence in men and the knowledge of heart failure, self-care management and self-care confidence in women. The relationship between social support and self-care maintenance was meditated by self-care confidence in men, whereas the relationship between knowledge of heart failure and self-care maintenance was meditated by self-care management and self-care confidence in women.

Self-care maintenance were inadequate in both genders with chronic heart failure. Interventions for enhancing social support and self-care confidence in men patients, and strengthening knowledge of heart failure, self-care management and self-care confidence in women patients, may facilitate self-care maintenance.