Predictors of medication adherence in inflammatory bowel disease

This study reports cross-sectional medication adherence data from year 1 of the Manitoba Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Cohort Study, a longitudinal, population-based study of multiple determinants of health outcomes in IBD in those diagnosed within 7 yr.

A total of 326 participants completed a validated multi-item self-report measure of adherence, which assesses a range of adherence behaviors. Demographic, clinical, and psycho-social characteristics were also assessed by survey. Adherence was initially considered as a continuous variable and then categorized as high or low adherence for logistic regression analysis to determine predictors of adherence behavior.

Using the cutoff score of 20/25 on the Medication Adherence Report Scale, high adherence was reported by 73% of men and 63% of women. For men, predictors of low adherence included diagnosis (UC: OR 4.42, 95% CI 1.66-11.75) and employment status (employed: OR 11.27, 95% CI 2.05-62.08). For women, predictors of low adherence included younger age (under 30 versus over 50 OR 3.64, 95% CI 1.41-9.43; under 30 vs. 40-49 yr: OR 2.62, 95% CI 1.07-6.42). High scores on the Obstacles to Medication Use Scale strongly related to low adherence for both men (OR 4.05, 95% CI 1.40-11.70) and women (OR 3.89, 95% CI 1.90-7.99). 5-ASA use (oral or rectal) was not related to adherence. For women, immunosuppressant use versus no use was associated with high adherence (OR 4.49, 95% CI 1.58-12.76). Low trait agreeableness was associated with low adherence (OR 2.03, 95% CI 1.12-3.66).

Approximately one-third of IBD patients were low adherers. Predictors of adherence differed markedly between genders, although obstacles such as medication cost were relevant for both men and women.