METHODS: This was a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study conducted in a public primary care setting in Singapore. A total of 289 participants aged 21-80 years with hypertension were recruited. Self-care profiles were measured using the Hypertension Self-Care Profile (HTN-SCP; range 0-240, domain range 0-80). Health literacy was measured using the Short-Form Health Literacy Scale (HLS-SF12; range 0-50, limited literacy ≤33).
RESULTS: The mean self-care score was 182.7 (standard deviation [SD] 23.2). The median HL score was 34.7 (interquartile range [IQR] 31.9-40.3), and 31.1% of participants had limited HL. Self-care was not associated with age, CKD status, household income and education, but was associated with gender and HL score. In the final regression model, lower HL scores (adjusted β = 1.03, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7 to 1.36, P < 0.001) and male gender (adjusted β = -5.29, 95% CI -10.56 to -0.03, P = 0.049) were associated with lower self-care scores. The HL scores were associated with self-care domains of self-efficacy (HL: β = 0.30, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.42, P < 0.001), motivation (HL: β = 0.40, 95% CI 0.26 to 0.53, P < 0.001) and behaviour (HL: β = 0.38, 95% CI 0.26 to 0.50, P < 0.001).
CONCLUSION: Thirty-one percent of the participants had limited HL. Self-care was not associated with age, race, CKD status, household income or education. Male gender and limited HL were associated with lower self-care. Self-care was associated with self-efficacy, motivation and behaviour. Future research could focus on more targeted approaches to improve self-care and HL among patients with CKD.
METHODS: In a single-centered, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled pilot trial conducted from 2019 to 2022, fatigued cancer survivors ≥21 years old were recruited to receive the XBYRT intervention or placebo (5% diluted) once daily for the duration of 8 weeks. Patient-reported outcomes for QOL, CRF, cognition, blood samples for biomarker testing, and adverse events were collected at baseline (T0), 4 weeks (T1), 8 weeks (T2), and 10 weeks (T3) after baseline. Linear regression was performed to evaluate differences between groups at T2 and T3.
RESULTS: A total of 1502 patients were screened, with 672 patients considered eligible. Of the eligible, 15 XBYRT and 13 placebo subjects with similar mean ages (58.5 vs 58.4) were recruited. Both groups were predominantly Chinese (93% vs 62%), breast cancer patients (87% vs 62%), and diagnosed with stage 2 cancer (60% vs 46%). Although no significant difference was found in QOL between groups, the XBYRT group exhibited improved emotional fatigue at T3 (P = .045) and higher BDNF levels at T2 (P = .047) and T3 (P = .029). After baseline adjustment, XBYRT was associated with better perceived cognitive impairment at T2 (P = .011) and T3 (P = .017), as well as overall perceived cognitive function at T3 (P = .028). XBYRT is well tolerated, with grade 3 adverse events reported in three XBYRT (20%) and two placebo (15%) subjects.
CONCLUSION: In this pilot study, XBYRT as an integrative therapy is safe and generates encouraging improvements in cognitive and fatigue symptoms. Difficulties with recruitment limited the generalizability of trial findings, thus findings should be verified through a larger, multi-centered trial.