Influence of home monitoring on compliance with a reduced sodium intake diet

To test the utility of a qualitative chloride titrator strip in facilitating compliance with a reduced sodium intake diet, we enrolled 32 patients into a randomized crossover trial comprising two study periods of four weeks each. The study periods were begun after the patients had undergone extensive instruction in the diet and the use of the strip. A high degree of correlation between the patient's and the laboratory's interpretation of the strip result was identified in 29 of the subjects. Ability to use the strip was not related to level of education. A total of 12 patients achieved compliance with the diet when using the strips. Of these, nine were able to achieve compliance without the strips. Ten patients (30%) had significantly lower sodium intake when using the strips than when they did not use them. We conclude that the use of the chloride titrator strip can be mastered by most patients and, in conjunction with dietary counseling, can facilitate compliance with a reduced sodium intake diet.