Table 2.
Health literacy-stratified analysis of barriers and facilitators to treatment adherence.
| Barrier/Facilitator | Low health literacy (n = 538) No. (%) |
Moderate health literacy (n = 539) No. (%) |
High health literacy (n = 538) No. (%) |
OR (95% CI)a | P for interaction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Treatment barriers | |||||
| High side effect concern | 237 (44.1) | 194 (36.0) | 151 (28.1) | 0.51 (0.39–0.67) | <0.001 |
| Significant embarrassment | 189 (35.1) | 151 (28.0) | 112 (20.8) | 0.49 (0.36–0.67) | <0.001 |
| High cost concern | 264 (49.1) | 219 (40.6) | 174 (32.3) | 0.50 (0.38–0.65) | <0.001 |
| Privacy concerns | 156 (29.0) | 118 (21.9) | 89 (16.5) | 0.48 (0.34–0.68) | 0.002 |
| Treatment facilitators | |||||
| Strong partner support | 367 (68.2) | 398 (73.8) | 423 (78.6) | 1.72 (1.24–2.39) | 0.01 |
| High treatment self-efficacy | 243 (45.2) | 289 (53.6) | 348 (64.7) | 2.23 (1.69–2.95) | <0.001 |
| Trust in healthcare providers | 312 (58.0) | 341 (63.3) | 378 (70.3) | 1.71 (1.26–2.32) | 0.005 |
| Telehealth acceptance | 345 (64.1) | 367 (68.1) | 407 (75.7) | 1.73 (1.26–2.37) | 0.01 |
| Information-seeking behaviors | |||||
| Actively seeks health information | 189 (35.1) | 259 (48.1) | 356 (66.2) | 3.64 (2.74–4.84) | <0.001 |
| Uses digital health resources | 145 (27.0) | 221 (41.0) | 329 (61.2) | 4.27 (3.15–5.78) | <0.001 |
| Participates in support groups | 86 (16.0) | 129 (23.9) | 194 (36.1) | 2.95 (2.12–4.11) | <0.001 |
OR indicates odds ratio; CI, confidence interval. a Odds ratio for high vs. low health literacy, adjusted for age, education, and clinical factors. Statistical Analysis: Multinomial logistic regression to identify differential barrier patterns across health literacy levels, with interaction terms.