title: Effectiveness of structured education on knowledge and health behaviors in patients with congenital heart disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether a single educational session increased the level of knowledge and changed the prevalence of health risk behaviors in young people with congenital heart disease (CHD).
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a longitudinal study of patients transferred to adult CHD care who received a single educational session (n = 201) at a tertiary care center. Their knowledge level and prevalence of health risk behaviors were assessed via the Leuven Knowledge Questionnaire CHD and the Health Behavior Scale CHD, respectively. A general linear model for longitudinal measurements was used to analyze the natural progression of patients' knowledge during a 27-month period and the effect of one educational session on outcomes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participating in an educational session resulted in a small-to-moderate, but significant, increase in total knowledge level and better understanding of deterioration symptoms, and rationale and frequency of follow-up; however, it did not improve patients' health behaviors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This type of education did improve knowledge but did not improve the patients' tendency to engage in better health behaviors. Future studies should assess the effect of repetitive exposure to educational sessions dealing with CHD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Primary Care, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Research Foundation Flanders, Brussel, Belgium.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Goossens
authors.affiliation: I-BioStat, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; I-BioStat, UHasselt, Hasselt, Belgium.
authors.forename: Steffen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fieuws
authors.affiliation: Division of Congenital and Structural Cardiology, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Kristien
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Van Deyk
authors.affiliation: School Psychology and Child and Adolescent Development, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Koen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Luyckx
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Cardiology, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gewillig
authors.affiliation: Division of Congenital and Structural Cardiology, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Werner
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Budts
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Primary Care, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; The Heart Centre, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark; Institute of Health and Care Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden. Electronic address: philip.moons@kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Moons
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods