title: Diabetes symptoms, health literacy, and health care use in adult Latinos with diabetes risk factors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study examined the extent of undetected and untreated type 2 diabetes in a sample of recent Latino immigrants, and looked at the relationships among diabetes symptoms, blood glucose level, diabetes knowledge, health literacy level, and health care use.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a descriptive and correlational design, 144 Latino adults were interviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Many participants had diabetes and reported symptoms, but they were not aware of the disease and were not receiving adequate health care. Lack of diabetes knowledge, low health literacy, and barriers to health care prevented appropriate symptom responses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Interventions that teach health literacy skills and diabetes symptom interpretation may improve health care use.
authors.affiliation: University of North Carolina at Charlotte School of Nursing, 9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223-0001, USA. mjcoffma@uncc.edu
authors.forename: Maren J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Coffman
authors.forename: Cynthia K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Norton
authors.forename: Lara
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Beene
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000208:ethnology*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D057220:Health Literacy; D006304:Health Status; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000208:ethnology*; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult