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Results for “Medication Adherence”

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PubMed2005

Patterns of corticosteroid medication use: non-adherence can be effective in milder asthma.

AIMS: To identify specific patterns of corticosteroid use and examine their relationship with asthma outcomes. METHODS: An adherence questionnaire was developed and applied in a population-based observational survey; this compared unscheduled care visits and asthma quality of life for adherent and non-adherent patient groups within 176 patients from a semi-rural UK practice. RESULTS: Three main patterns of medication use were identified: Regular; Regular-but-less (Low-Dosing); and Symptom-Directed variation. For mild-to-moderate asthma (BTS treatment step 2), non-adherence produced acceptable outcomes, not significantly different from outcomes for adherent patients. For more severe asthma, regular adherence was more effective, resulting in significantly less unscheduled visits. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that flexible 'symptom-directed' medication use and patient-initiated dose reduction may be viable alternatives to regular medication for a number of lower severity patients. For milder asthma, clinicians should perhaps focus their efforts on patients with poor asthma outcomes, rather than poor adherence.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Patient adherence to long-term medical treatment of kidney stones.

PURPOSE: We determine patient adherence to and quality of outcome of medical kidney stone treatment during a 30-year duration at a single university based referral clinic. We also analyze time trends in adherence and timing of followup measurements, and supersaturation reduction during treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data on all patients who entered the University of Chicago Kidney Stone Prevention Program from 1970 to 2000 were analyzed. Fractions of new patients who had any followup and those remaining in followup at increasing intervals were analyzed. Timing of followup was measured. Changes in adherence during the 3 decades were also analyzed, as was reduction in supersaturation in regard to calcium oxalate, calcium phosphate and uric acid. RESULTS: A total of 70% to 80% of patients were retained at each successive followup cycle with 2 physicians, and a clinical protocol that always required 6-week followup with 24-hour urine collection and a yearly one thereafter for stone risk factors. Retention decreased during the last 5 years of the 1990s. Supersaturation reduction was present by the first followup and remained constant or improved with time. Timing of followup measurements was in accord with our protocol. CONCLUSIONS: At best, one can retain only 70% to 80% of patients in a followup program at each interval, and achieve supersaturation reductions that are constant and significant during the long term. Timing of followup measurements can be close to that of the protocol in use.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Effects of psychoeducational intervention for married patients with bipolar disorder and their spouses.

The relative benefit of adding a structured psychoeducational intervention to standard medication treatment for married patients with bipolar disorder and their spouses was assessed. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either medication management or medication management plus a marital intervention with their spouses for an 11-month period. Patients' symptoms, functioning, and adherence to their medication regimens were measured at study entry and at 11 months. Significant effects favoring the combined treatments were observed for overall patient functioning but not for symptom levels. The marital intervention was associated with improved medication adherence. Combined psychosocial and medication treatment does not affect patients' symptom levels beyond the effects of medication alone, but it does result in significant incremental gains in overall patient functioning.

Bipolar Disorder↗

PubMed2001

Shared decision making in hypertension: the impact of patient preferences on treatment choice.

BACKGROUND: Recent guidelines for treatment of hypertension advocate a multifactorial approach based on absolute risk of a cardiovascular event. However, this does not take any account of individual patient values or preferences for health outcomes that result from having hypertension. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to investigate the impact of patient preferences on treatment recommendations for hypertension using individual decision analysis. METHODS: We carried out an observational study based on interviews with 52 hypertensive patients. Patient preferences were measured using the standard gamble method. Associations between outcome of the individual decision analyses (recommendation to accept or decline antihypertensive medication) and treatment guidelines based on blood pressure and absolute cardiovascular risk were investigated. Adherence to medication during the 6 months following the interview was also assessed. RESULTS: Individual patient preferences have a substantial impact on the proportion of patients for whom drug treatment would be recommended. In 52 patients interviewed, decision analysis indicated that 29 [56%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 41--70] should be treated, compared with 27 (52%, 38--66) using a cardiovascular risk of > or =10% over 5 years and 19 (37%, 24--51) using a systolic blood pressure of > or =160 mmHG: There was marked disagreement between the decision analysis and these recommendations (kappas 0.18 or less). There was no relationship between outcome of the decision analysis and adherence to medication [chi-square (1 d.f.) = 0.5, P = 0.5]. CONCLUSIONS: Quantifying patients' preferences and using decision analysis as a shared decision-making aid appears to have an impact on whether patients would be recommended for antihypertensive medication. Further evaluation of this method as a shared decision-making tool is warranted.

Antihypertensive Agents↗

PubMed2006

Adolescent primary care patients' preferences for depression treatment.

Despite efficacious treatments for depression in youth, current data indicate low rates of care. To better understand reasons for these low rates of care, we examined treatment preferences for depression treatment. Adolescents (N=444) who screened positive for depression at a primary care visit completed measures of predisposing, enabling, and need characteristics thought to be related to help seeking. Results indicated a strong tendency for adolescents to prefer active treatment (72%) versus watchful waiting (28%), and for youth to prefer counseling (50%) versus medication (22%). Female gender, prior treatment experience, and current depression and anxiety were related to preference for active treatment over watchful waiting. In multivariable analyses, female gender and current anxiety symptoms remained significant predictors of preference for active treatment. Ethnicity, attitudes about depression care, prior treatment experience, and anxiety symptoms were related to preference for medication over counseling. In multivariable analyses, those with negative attitudes about depression treatment generally, with positive attitudes about treatment via medication, or with current anxiety symptoms were more likely to prefer medication. Youth preference for counseling over medication may contribute to low adherence to medication treatment and underscores the importance of patient education aimed at promoting positive expectations for treatments.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2006

Exploring racial and ethnic disparities in prescription drug spending and use among Medicare beneficiaries.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about why minority Medicare beneficiaries spend less on and use fewer prescription drugs than white Medicare beneficiaries. OBJECTIVE: We explored whether population differences in demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, and health status were associated with observed disparities by race and ethnicity in the prescription drug spending and use of noninstitutionalized elderly Medicare beneficiaries. METHODS: We used a nationally representative sample of 8101 white, 816 black, and 642 Hispanic Medicare beneficiaries from the 1999 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey Cost and Use files. For each of these groups, we calculated total prescription drug spending, out-of-pocket spending, and number of prescriptions. We then used the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition method to separate the impact of race and ethnicity on disparities in spending and use from the impact of differences in population characteristics across racial and ethnic groups. RESULTS: Much of the disparity in spending between whites and blacks and some of the disparity between whites and Hispanics can be attributed to race/ethnicity. Because of race/ethnicity, total spending for whites was 8.9% more than for blacks and 5.4% more than for Hispanics. Similarly, total out-of pocket spending for whites was 28.8% more than for blacks and 10.7% more than for Hispanics. Race/ethnicity also influenced the amount of prescription drug use. Whites used 2.3 more prescriptions than blacks and 1.6 more than Hispanics. However, these differences in use were offset by the impact of differences in population characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in factors identified in the Andersen model of access to care do not fully explain observed disparities in prescription drug use and spending. The portion of the disparities due to race and ethnicity may reflect patients' skepticism about medicine and medical care in general, patients' adherence to medical advice, patient-physician communication, physicians' prescribing habits, and usual source of care. Future research should explore whether these and other unobserved factors associated with race and ethnicity are responsible for disparities in drug spending and use.

Black or African American↗

PubMed2005

Adherence and nonadherence to antipsychotic medications.

The aims of this study were to identify dimensions of reasons for adherence and nonadherence to antipsychotic medications, and their associations with clinical and demographic profiles. A total number of 106 participants with DSM-IV psychosis spectrum disorders from two larger studies in inpatient and community settings participated. The Rating of Medication Influences (ROMI) Scale was used to measure subjective reasons for adherence and nonadherence. A series of multiple regression analyses found that mood symptom scores on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) predicted most dimensions of reasons for adherence and nonadherence. Higher mood scores were associated with positive affinity for medications and positive relationship with clinicians. Lower mood scores predicted four out of five reasons for nonadherence. Adherence and nonadherence behaviors were determined by different variables and were not mirror opposites.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

[Medication compliance].

Compliance is defined as the extent to which a patient's behaviour coincides with medical or health advice. Medication compliance seems to be rather low as 30 to 60% of no or poor adherence to medical recommendation have been reported. Numerous factors may influence medication compliance among which patient's characteristics, disease particularities, drug treatment modalities or physician's attitudes. The consequences of medication non-compliance may not only be dangerous for patient's health, but also dramatically increase the financial cost for public health services. Thus, all energies should be devoted to improve drug compliance, including treatment optimization and simplification, patient's information and education, use of practical means that facilitate adherence to medical recommendation, the patient being responsible for his/her treatment.

Drug Therapy↗

PubMed2006

Why all prescribed medications are not taken: results from a survey of chronic dialysis patients.

Although medication non adherence is common in all populations, including those on chronic dialysis, the reasons for medication noncompliance in dialysis patients have rarely been examined. We surveyed 54 chronic dialysis patients (15 on peritoneal dialysis, 39 on hemodialysis), asking about their social and financial situations, medication coverage, and reasons for possibly not obtaining all prescribed medications. The study population was 56% female, 52% African American, 67% over 50 years of age, 27% diabetic, and 61% on dialysis for more than 2 years. One patient was unemployed, 33 were retired, 15 were on disability, and 5 were employed. A majority (63%) had a household income of dollars 25,000 or more annually. Most (70%) had some medication coverage through one or more health plans (53% Medicare, 14% Medicaid, 31% private) or a local pharmacy (31% UVA pharmacy program for the medically indigent). However, 39% still spent more than dollars 100 monthly on medications. Co-pays per prescription ranged from nothing (2 patients) to dollars 25 or more (16 patients), with half having a co-pay of more than dollars 11 per prescription. Most (69%) took 11 or more medications daily. Among all our study patients, 91% reported that they knew their medications and the reasons that those medications were prescribed. The choice not to fill a prescription was made by 30% of patients either because they had no money (67%) or no ride to the pharmacy (17%). When asked if they ever chose not to take specific medications, 11 of 53 respondents (21%) said yes because of side effects [4 (36%)] or cost [3 (27%)], or because they already take too many medications [2 (18%)]. Most respondents (91%) reported discussing their medications with their doctors, and a majority (65%) had these discussions at least monthly. We conclude that inadequate prescription coverage, lack of transportation, and medication cost are primary contributors to medication noncompliance among chronic dialysis patients. Patients report knowing their medications and the reasons that those medications are prescribed, and having ample opportunities to discuss their medications with their physicians. Lack of patient education therefore does not seem to be an important factor in medication non adherence.

Aged↗

PubMed2002

HIV-seropositive individuals' optimistic beliefs about prognosis and relation to medication and safe sex adherence.

OBJECTIVE: The study objective was to characterize respondents' prognostic perceptions of HIV infection and to explore how perceptions might affect medication and safe sex nonadherence. METHODS: Surveys were mailed to 295 clients of an HIV-specific case management organization. Participants were asked to describe experience with HIV/AIDS right after serostatus knowledge and currently, using provided word lists, after which they were asked to assess current life expectancy. Self-reported information on antiretroviral medication and safe sex nonadherence was obtained. RESULTS: A total of 220 (75%) clients (66% nonwhite, 73% male, 63% gay/bisexual, 50% educated >12 years, and 53% with incomes <$10,000/year) returned surveys. Negative descriptors from word lists were significantly less common and positive descriptors significantly more common now compared to right after serostatus knowledge. Current perceptions about life expectancy indicated that most respondents thought they would live many years, many believing they would live well into old age. Whites (odds ratio [OR], 0.34; P =.01) were less likely and those with >12 years education (OR, 2.76; P =.02) and with CD4 cell counts >200 (OR, 2.70; P =.01) were more likely to have optimistic prognostic beliefs. The optimistic subgroup, when compared with the pessimistic subgroup, was more likely to report medication (26% vs 13%, P =.04) and safe sex (57% vs 29%, P =.004) nonadherence. CONCLUSIONS: Seropositive individuals, including persons of color (adjusted) as well as women and drug users (unadjusted), self-reported optimistic beliefs about their prognosis. Those with more optimism about their prognosis were significantly more likely to report medication and safe sex nonadherence. A better understanding of seropositive patients' prognostic beliefs and the factors determining them is warranted.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Stimulant treatment over five years: adherence, effectiveness, and adverse effects.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of adherence and medication status on effectiveness and adverse effects of stimulant use in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) over 5 years. METHOD: Seventy-nine of 91 participants in a 12-month randomized controlled trial of methylphenidate and parent groups enrolled in a follow-up study. Adherence to stimulants, treatment response, and adverse effects were evaluated annually for 5 years. Changes in teacher-reported symptoms and parent-reported adverse effects were compared at 2, 3, 4, and 5 years for 3 groups: adherents, nonadherents on medication, or nonadherents off medication. Controlling for age, gender, and baseline severity, adherence status and medication status were evaluated as correlates of teacher-reported ADHD symptom scores at each year using multiple regression analyses. RESULTS: At 2 years, adherents (n = 41) showed greater improvement in teacher-reported symptoms than those off medication (n = 16) and equivalent response to nonadherents on stimulants (n = 16) (p =.02). At 5 years, adherents (n = 16) showed greater improvement in teacher-reported symptoms than nonadherents on stimulants (n = 15) and those off medication (n = 14) (p =.04). At year 2 medication status (beta = 4.67 [0.40-8.95, p =.033]) and at year 5 adherence status (beta = 7.23 [3.01-11.44, p =.001]) correlated with higher teacher-reported symptom scores. Clinically significant adverse effects were present for 5 years, most commonly loss of appetite. CONCLUSIONS: Psychostimulants improve ADHD symptoms for up to 5 years, but adverse effects persist.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗

PubMed2001

Predictors of compliance with neuroleptic medication among inpatients with schizophrenia: a discriminant function analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To identify clinically useful predictors of adherence to medication among persons with schizophrenia. METHOD: We evaluated levels of compliance with neuroleptic medication among 32 consecutive admissions with DSM-III-R schizophrenia from a geographically defined catchment area using a compliance interview. We also assessed symptomatology, insight, neurological status and memory. RESULTS: Less than 25% of consecutive admissions reported being fully compliant. Drug attitudes were the best predictor of regular compliance, symptomatology the best predictor of noncompliance, and memory the best predictor of partial compliance with neuroleptic medication. CONCLUSIONS: These data emphasise the complexity of factors that influence whether a person adheres to his medication regimen. Furthermore, they suggest that these factors may vary within the same person over time.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Medication refill logistics and refill adherence in HIV.

PURPOSE: Strict adherence to antiretroviral therapy is instrumental in viral suppression and treatment success. The relation between pharmacy-based factors and treatment adherence has been under-explored. We aimed to determine whether different medication refill mechanisms were associated with differences in antiretroviral refill adherence. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 110 HIV-infected subjects on standard antiretroviral regimens for >or=3 months cared for at the Philadelphia Veterans' Affairs Medical Center HIV clinic. The primary outcome was a pharmacy-based measure of antiretroviral refill adherence over the 3 months of treatment immediately prior to the study date. RESULTS: The group obtaining refills at the pharmacy had lower adherence [80% (interquartile range (IQR), 69-99%)] than the group obtaining refills via pill organizers dispensed by a pharmacist [99% (IQR, 97-100%), p=0.003] and the group obtaining refills via mail order [91% (IQR, 79-100%); p=0.04]. CONCLUSIONS: Mail ordering and pharmacists dispensing refills in pill organizers may each be effective strategies for improving medication adherence, although they target different barriers and differ in their degree of intensity. Each should be considered for adherence interventions in HIV and further studied in other disease and treatment settings.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Adherence to treatment with antipsychotic medication and health care costs among Medicaid beneficiaries with schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE: The authors' goal was to evaluate the relationship between adherence to treatment with antipsychotic medication and health expenditures. A secondary objective was to identify risk factors predictive of nonadherence. METHOD: Data included Medicaid eligibility and claims data from 1998 to 2000 for San Diego County, Calif. Pharmacy records were used to assess adherence to treatment with antipsychotic medication according to the cumulative possession ratio (the number of days medications were available for consumption divided by the number of days subjects were eligible for Medi-Cal). Regression models were used to examine risk factors, hospitalizations, and costs associated with nonadherence, partial adherence, adherence, and excess fills of antipsychotic medication. RESULTS: Forty-one percent of Medicaid beneficiaries with schizophrenia were found to be adherent to treatment with their antipsychotic medications: 24% were nonadherent, 16% were partially adherent, and 19% were excess fillers. Rates of psychiatric hospitalization were lower for those who were adherent (14%) than for those who were nonadherent (35%), partially adherent (24%), or had excess fills (25%). Rates of medical hospitalization were lower for those who were adherent (7%) than for those who were nonadherent (13%) or had excess fills (12%). Those who were adherent had significantly lower hospital costs than the other groups; pharmacy costs were higher among those who were adherent than among those who were nonadherent or partially adherent and were highest for excess fillers. Total costs for excess fillers (14,044 US dollars) were substantially higher than total costs for any other group. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the widespread use of atypical antipsychotic medications, alarmingly high rates of both underuse and excessive filling of antipsychotic prescriptions were found in Medicaid beneficiaries with schizophrenia. The high rates of antipsychotic nonadherence and associated negative consequences suggest interventions on multiple levels.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

A prospective study of risk factors for nonadherence with antipsychotic medication in the treatment of schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to prospectively identify the best single predictor and the best set of predictors of risk for nonadherence with anti-psychotic medication in the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. METHOD: We used data from 1579 patients in a 3-year, prospective, naturalistic, nonrandomized, multisite study of schizophrenia patients conducted from July 1997 to September 2003 (U.S. Schizophrenia Care and Assessment Program). Adherence with any oral antipsychotic medication was assessed using patient-reported medication adherence and an indirect adherence measure based on medical record prescription information. Patients who reported poor medication adherence or had a medication possession ratio < or = 80% (percentage of days with prescriptions for any oral antipsychotic) during the first year after enrollment were defined as nonadherent (N = 296, 18.8%). Thirty-nine previously reported potential risk factors of nonadherence with antipsychotic medication were assessed at enrollment with valid and reliable measures. Risk factors represented patient-, environment-, and treatment-related domains, including sociodemographics, symptom severity, substance use, threat to safety of self and others, other illness-related factors, need for supervision, medication-related adverse events, and prior medication-utilization patterns. RESULTS: The best single predictor of future nonadherence was nonadherence during the 6 months prior to enrollment (odds ratio = 4.1, 95% confidence interval = 3.1 to 5.6, p < .001). The best set of predictors of nonadherence, ordered by strength of association, included prior non-adherence, recent illicit drug use, recent alcohol use, prior treatment with antidepressants, and greater patient-reported, medication-related cognitive impairment. CONCLUSION: Nonadherence with antipsychotic medication is associated with a well-defined set of risk factors that can be used to identify patients who are predisposed to poor adherence.

Administration, Oral↗

PubMed1996

Mycobacteriosis and HIV infection: the new public health challenge.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection alters the epidemiology of mycobacterial infections. In the industrialised world, this has led to an increase in severe illness associated with Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex (MAC) and, in the developing world, to doubling of tuberculosis cases in some countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The interaction with Mycobacterium tuberculosis occurs when the CD4 count is relatively high (> 200) and tuberculosis (TB) is now the commonest presenting AIDS defining disease in Africa. In international public health terms the interaction between TB and HIV infection has led to the World Health Organisation declaring TB to be a global emergency. Both TB and HIV are diseases of poverty and the key to the reduction of incidence of both diseases is the improvement of socio-economic conditions. Other control methods are case finding and treatment, chemoprophylaxis and BCG vaccination. Finding active (sputum positive) case of tuberculosis and treating them is the function of TB control programmes in all countries, but poor adherence to medication has lead to low cure rates and increasing development of drug resistance. Resources are needed to improve adherence to medication and for research to improve diagnostic methods and treatment.

HIV Infections↗

PubMed2006

Self-reported adherence in patients with asthma.

BACKGROUND: Not all patients with asthma adhere to their prescribed drug regimens. The Behavioral Model of Health Services Utilization, organized as predisposing, enabling, and need variables, may be useful in identifying variables related to adherent medication-taking behavior. OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between predisposing, enabling, and need variables and self-reported adherence with asthma controller drugs. METHODS: A secondary analysis was conducted from a cross-sectional study using survey and claims data obtained from adults with asthma enrolled in a managed care organization. Independent variables included predisposing (age, gender, race, years with asthma, number of comorbidities, health beliefs), enabling (income, number of metered-dose inhaler [MDI] instructors, inhaler technique, perceived physician access), and need (patient-perceived severity, symptom-derived severity, health-related quality of life). Adherence was measured using a 4 item questionnaire scored as the mean of the responses, with 5 denoting highest adherence. Multivariate regression analysis was used to identify variables with statistically significant relationships to self-reported adherence. Stepwise backward elimination was used, with the final model consisting of variables considered significant at p less than 0.05. RESULTS: The 573 respondents (1270 packets sent; 45% response rate) were primarily white (89.5%) and female (71.0%), with an average age of 40.5 +/- 12.4 years (mean +/- SD) and average asthma duration of 18.3 +/- 14.2 years. The mean adherence scale score was 3.7 +/- 1.1, with 84.6% indicating some level of nonadherence (score <5). The final model had an adjusted R(2) of 0.26 and included 6 independent variables. Better adherence was associated with stronger beliefs in the benefits of treatment and trigger avoidance, greater perceived asthma severity, longer asthma duration, more MDI instructors, and higher scores on the Short-Form 36 mental component summary. CONCLUSIONS: Complex beliefs, perceptions, and experiences constitute the variables associated with adherent medication-taking behavior. Future longitudinal studies should include these variables to determine the predictive strength of the model.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

Patients' ideas about medicines: a qualitative study in a general practice population.

BACKGROUND: Little attention has been paid to patients' ideas about medicines and such ideas might well have relevance for understanding non-adherence to medication. AIM: This qualitative study set out to describe the ideas about medicines and the self-reported adherence to medication of a general practice population. METHOD: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 30 adult patients (attenders and non-attenders) from two general practices. RESULTS: The main themes emerging from the analysis were: perceived properties of medicines; orientation towards medicines, that is, patients' general preference for taking or not taking medication; and actual usage of medicines. The data revealed that on the one hand much medicine taking was taken for granted and on the other hand that patients had many fears and powerful negative images of medicines. CONCLUSION: Any assessment of the appropriateness of a proposed treatment for an individual patient should include an exploration of his or her preferences, orientation towards medicines and social context.

Adult↗