Postmenopausal osteoporosis is characterized by low bone mass and increased fracture risk. Treatment includes exercise, nutrition, supplements, and medications like bisphosphonates, denosumab, or hormone replacement therapy. Lifestyle changes such as quitting smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, and preventing falls are also crucial.
Despite effective treatments, adherence is low: 20-30% of patients don't start oral bisphosphonates, and 16-60% continue medications after one year. Exercise adherence rates are similarly low (14.3%-57.7%). This non-adherence imposes a significant clinical and economic burden.
Health literacy (HL)-the ability to find, understand, and use health information-is vital for managing health but is understudied in relation to osteoporosis treatment adherence. This study aims to examine the relationship between HL, exercise habits, and medication adherence in postmenopausal osteoporosis patients. Understanding these factors can lead to effective interventions, improving patient adherence and health outcomes.
The study will measure HL levels and their correlation with medication and exercise adherence, potentially informing health education programs and strategies to enhance treatment adherence. By doing so, it aims to improve health outcomes and healthcare system efficiency.
Postmenopausal patients
Being under outpatient follow-up for osteoporosis for at least one year
Orthopedic, rheumatic, and neurological conditions that may hinder participation in exercise
Cancer
Refusal to participate in the study
Patients who have been diagnosed with postmenopausal osteoporosis and treated in the outpatient clinic for at least one year will be included in the study. Every subject meeting the criteria of inclusion is going to be included into the study via consecutive participant sampling method.
Cohort
Prospective
Not listed
Health literacy
Health literacy is the capacity of individuals to find, understand, evaluate, and apply health-related information to prevent diseases, develop healthy eating behaviors, and improve their health. The Turkish Health Literacy Scale-32 (THLS-32) will be used to assess the health literacy levels of the patients. THLS-32 is a 32-item Likert-type scale. Scores on the scale range from 0 indicating the lowest health literacy to 50 indicating the highest health literacy.
Medication adherence
The Medication Adherence Report Scale (MARS) will be used to assess medication adherence in patients. This scale consists of five different statements involving negative medication adherence behaviors, including deciding to skip doses, forgetting to take medication, changing the dosage, temporarily stopping medication intake, and taking less than prescribed. The total score on the MARS ranges from 5 to 25 points, with higher scores indicating better medication adherence
Physical activity
The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was developed in 1998 for global physical activity surveillance. Since then, it has become the most widely used physical activity questionnaire. IPAQ-Short Form (IPAQ-SF) is a 7-item questionnaire that assesses the level of activity (low, moderate, high physical activity) in the past seven days.
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