Correlation between health literacy and health-related quality of life in patients with hypertension, in Tehran, Iran, 2015–2016

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Hypertension is considered an important public health problem in developed and developing countries. This disease is closely associated with the quality of life of patients, and it seems that health literacy plays a role in this regard. Due to lack of information on the role of health literacy on the quality of life in patients with hypertension, this study has aimed to determine the correlation between health literacy and health-related quality of life in patients with hypertension. METHODS: This study is cross-sectional. The sample consisted of 400 patients with hypertension who were enrolled if available. To collect data, a demographic questionnaire (SF-36), Short Form Health Survey, and Health Literacy for Iranian Adults (HELIA) Inventory were used. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 21 for descriptive and inferential statistics (e.g., mean, standard deviation, t-test, and Pearson correlation coefficient). RESULTS: The mean and standard deviation scores of health literacy and health-related quality of life were, respectively, 68.66 (±13.56) and 52.94 (±15.20). There was positive and significant correlation between health literacy and health-related quality of life (p<0.01, r=0.30). CONCLUSION: According to research findings, there was a significant positive correlation between health literacy and health-related quality of life. Given the importance of health literacy in the quality of life in patients with hypertension, it seems essential that nursing officials and policymakers take steps to promote patients’ health and quality of life by using training programs appropriate for the patients’ health literacy level.