Conhecimento de pacientes acompanhados em ambulatório de cardiologia sobre o tratamento com a Varfarina

Abstract

The use of anticoagulant therapy entails a range of responsibilities, as with other treatments that require changes in the patient9s dietary routine, necessitating a broader understanding of the medication being used. This study aims to assess the knowledge of patients followed in a cardiology outpatient clinic regarding warfarin treatment. It is a descriptive study to be conducted at the cardiology outpatient clinic of a university hospital in Northeastern Brazil. Data collection instruments will be used, including a sociodemographic and clinical-epidemiological questionnaire, along with a validated form specifically assessing knowledge on the use of anticoagulants4the OAK Test. The sample will be selected by convenience, based on an approximate monthly population of 150 individuals who are on continuous warfarin therapy and are monitored at the outpatient clinic. Inclusion and exclusion criteria will be applied, along with the signing of informed consent. The data will be tabulated and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The study was submitted to the ethics and research committee and was approved under protocol number 6.806.384. The results obtained show that the research, conducted so far with 50 patients, was predominantly composed of women (58%), with 50% of the participants identifying themselves as mixed race. The majority were married (68%) and aged between 41 and 59 years (50%). Regarding occupation, 68% were inactive, with 38% earning between 2 and 3 minimum wages, and 42% had up to 2 dependents. The majority (42%) had more than 11 years of schooling, having completed high school or not. Regarding health conditions, 5 patients had coronary artery disease, 1 had aortic disease and 27 were diagnosed with valvular heart disease, the main cause for continuous use of warfarin. Regarding habits, 62% had no history of smoking and 54% had been alcoholics in the past. In addition, 40% were classified as overweight, although 52% stated that they practiced physical activities regularly. Regarding knowledge about the use of warfarin, 70% of participants were unable to answer at least one question in the questionnaire, with the question about vitamin K having the highest percentage of responses <did not know how to answer= (52% did not know). The second question, which involved the color of the medication, was excluded from the analysis, as it was not addressed during the consultations. The lowest number of correct answers occurred in questions about drug interactions and INR risks. Overall, participants answered between 3 and 17 questions correctly, with an average of 10.76 correct answers. Only 8% of participants answered more than 14 questions correctly, and 9 got more than 50% correct answers in the questionnaire.