PURPOSE Limited health literacy is increasingly recognized as a barrier to receiving adequate health care. Identifying patients at risk of poor health outcomes secondary to limited health literacy is currently the responsibility of clinicians. Our objective was to identify which screening questions and demographics independently predict limited health literacy and could thus help clinicians individualize their patient education. METHODSBetween August 2006 and July 2007, we asked 225 patients being treated for diabetes at an academic primary care offi ce several questions regarding their reading ability as part of a larger study (57% response rate). We built a logistic regression model predicting limited health literacy to determine the independent predictive properties of these questions and demographic variables. Patients were classifi ed as having limited health literacy if they had a Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (S-TOFHLA) score of less than 23. The potential predictors evaluated were self-rated reading ability, highest education level attained, Single-Item Literacy Screener (SILS) result, patients' reading enjoyment, age, sex, and race.RESULTS Overall, 15.1% of the patients had limited health literacy. In the fi nal model, 5 of the potential predictors were independently associated with increased odds of having limited health literacy. Specifi cally, patients were more likely to have limited health literacy if they had a poorer self-rated reading ability (odds ratio [OR] per point increase in the model = 3.37; 95% confi dence interval [CI], 1.71-6.63), more frequently needed help reading written health materials (assessed by the SILS) (OR = 2.03; 95% CI, 1.26-3.26), had a lower education level (OR = 1.89; 95% CI, 1.12-3.18), were male (OR = 4.46; 95% CI, 1.53-12.99), and were of nonwhite race (OR = 3.73; 95% CI, 1.04-13.40). These associations were not confounded by age. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.9212. CONCLUSIONS Self-rated reading ability, SILS result, highest education level attained, sex, and race independently predict whether a patient has limited health literacy. Clinicians should be aware of these associations and ask questions to identify patients at risk. We propose an "SOS" mnemonic based on these fi ndings to help clinicians wishing to individualize patient education. 17 Not all of these associations have been found with perfect consistency, however. [18][19][20] We refer the interested reader to larger literature reviews and summary analyses for a more comprehensive look at the effects of literacy on health-related outcomes. 21,22 Interventions exist to aid persons with limited health literacy. Simplifying instruction forms is an effective means of ensuring better comprehension for entire patient populations. [23][24][25] Patients' health care teams may be of assistance by providing simplifi ed education and ensuring that patients understand and retain what is being said. [26][27][28] Although the use of such strategies should ...

ARBs are an important therapy for hypertensive type 2 diabetic patients and can benefit normotensive diabetic patients as well. ARB dosage optimization or the addition of a second renoprotective agent (ACE inhibitor or non-dihydropyridine calcium-channel blocker) may be important for optimal renoprotection, although further research is clearly needed in this area.

A single-dose, prospective, randomized, four-treatment, four-period crossover study was conducted to determine the acute effect of therapeutically equivalent doses of three commonly used phosphate binders on oral iron absorption. Twenty-three healthy subjects received 65 mg of elemental iron alone and with each phosphate binder (calcium carbonate 3000 mg, calcium acetate 2668 mg, or sevelamer HCl 2821 mg). Area under the change in plasma iron concentration-time curve over 6 hours postdosing was measured. ANOVA was used to assess the statistical significance of differences in iron absorption among the treatments. The relative bioavailability of iron administered with each phosphate binder compared to iron administered alone was estimated. The relative iron bioavailabilities (95% confidence intervals) for the calcium carbonate, calcium acetate, and sevelamer HCI treatments were 0.81 (0.70, 0.94), 0.73 (0.63, 0.85), and 0.90 (0.78, 1.05), respectively. Thus, single doses of both calcium-based phosphate binders significantly reduced single-dose iron absorption, while sevelamer HCl did not.

Moricizine is a phenothiazine derivative with Vaughan Williams class 1 antiarrhythmic properties. It undergoes extensive first-pass metabolism, has a bioavailability of 34-38 percent, and is 95 percent bound to plasma proteins. Moricizine is extensively metabolized and may have pharmacologically active metabolites. A recent clinical study has shown that moricizine is slightly less effective than encainide or flecainide in suppressing ventricular premature depolarizations. Compared with disopyramide and quinidine, moricizine was equally or more effective in suppressing ventricular premature depolarizations, couplets, and nonsustained ventricular tachycardia. Further studies are needed comparing moricizine with other class 1 agents in the treatment of life-threatening arrhythmias; available data suggest that moricizine is comparable with these agents in the treatment of ventricular tachycardias and fibrillation. Moricizine appears to have a low incidence of serious adverse effects compared with other antiarrhythmics. This combination of apparently similar efficacy with a decreased incidence of adverse effects makes moricizine a worthwhile addition to currently available antiarrhythmic agents.

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