A review of health behavior theories and their applicability to dysphagia treatment

摘要

Suboptimal treatment adherence is a barrier to dysphagia management and contributes significantly to severe health conditions. However, there has been no consensus as to which variables contributing to adherence are the most salient. We suggest that using health behavior theories in the research and treatment of adherence to dysphagia treatment recommendations may assist in identifying critical processes that underlie behavior change, leading to improved adherence to treatment. Electronic databases including MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, and EMBASE were searched between January 1966 to April 2008 for English-language studies pertaining to health behavior theories and patient adherence. Six main theoretical perspectives related to adherence were identified and are reviewed. Review of the literature supports that research investigating theory-based interventions to promote treatment adherence is an important prerequisite for the design of effective dysphagia management programs.