Medication Literacy and Social Support Among Adult Liver Transplant Recipients: A Cross-Sectional Study

Long-term medication self-management after liver transplantation remains challenging. This study assessed medication literacy among adult liver transplant recipients, examined its association with perceived social support, and descriptively explored self-reported immunosuppressant-taking behaviors.

A single-center cross-sectional survey was conducted among 161 adult liver transplant recipients attending outpatient follow-up at a tertiary grade A hospital in Nanjing, China. Medication literacy, perceived social support, demographic and clinical characteristics, and self-reported immunosuppressant-taking behaviors were collected using structured questionnaires. Group comparisons, multiple linear regression, and correlation analyses were performed. A post-hoc exploratory logistic regression was additionally conducted to examine factors associated with reporting any immunosuppressant non-adherence indicator.

Participants had a relatively high overall medication literacy score, although information acquisition was the weakest dimension. Educational level and perceived social support were independently associated with medication literacy. Family support showed the strongest correlation with medication literacy among social-support dimensions. More than half of participants reported at least one self-reported immunosuppressant-taking behavior indicating possible non-adherence, most commonly a deviation from the scheduled medication time, and higher perceived social support was associated with lower odds of immunosuppressant non-adherence in exploratory analysis.

Medication literacy in adult liver transplant recipients was associated with educational level and perceived social support. The exploratory findings concerning immunosuppressant-taking behaviors require confirmation in prospective studies using validated and objective adherence measures.