Digital Health Literacy and Supportive Care Needs After Curative Esophagectomy: A Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose

Recovery after esophagectomy may involve physical, informational, and psychosocial demands. This study examined whether total Digital Health literacy was associated with unmet supportive care needs. Patients and methods: Here, we conducted a single-center cross-sectional survey of 337 adults attending their first postoperative outpatient review, approximately 1 month after curative esophagectomy. Participants completed the 34-item Supportive Care Needs Survey Short Form and the Chinese Digital Health Literacy Instrument. SCNS-SF34 domain scores were standardized to 0-100. Pearson correlation and a prespecified hierarchical linear regression were used; HC3 and bootstrap estimates assessed the stability of the findings.