Self-care behaviors in patients with systolic heart failure

Background and Purpose: To improve life quality, and lower mortality and rehospitalization for heart failure patients, awareness and adherence to self-care behaviors are essential. This study aims to determine the adherence level to self-care behaviors in the patients with systolic heart failure hospitalized in Alborz hospital in Karaj andShahriar hospital, and it was conducted in 2013. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 100 patients with at least one year experience of developing heart failure and ejection fraction below 40% were studied. They were admitted to Alborz Social Security hospital of Karaj and the Social Security Hospital Shahriar during 2012-2013. They were selected through convenience sampling. Demographic data and European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior questionnaires were completed through interviews. Data analysis has been done using SPSS, V.18 and independent t-test and ANOVA. Results: 84% of the subjects had moderate and 10% had poor adherence to self-care. The best adherence to self-care behaviors was related to the drug and diet regimen and the poorest to the daily weight control and exercise. There was a significant relationship between self-care behaviors and age (p=0.011), marital status (p=0.008), the number of chronic diseases (p=0.048), hypertension (p=0.038), chronic pulmonary obstruction (p=0.029), renal disease (p=0.017) and severity of the disease (p=0.032). Conclusion: Adherence to self-care behaviors in heart failure patients is not appropriate. Training and following up self-care behaviors should focus on the specific problems of aging, social support, diet and drug regimens simplification and its relation with other chronic diseases.