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Published on: November 8, 2013
Patients' self-reported adherence to cardiovascular medication using electronic monitors as comparators.
Andreas Zeller1, Esther Ramseier, Anne Teagtmeyer
1Medical Outpatients Department, University Hospital Basel, Petersgraben 4, CH-4031 Basel, Switzerland. zellera@uhbs.ch
Summary
Self-reporting cardiovascular medication adherence is inaccurate, with most patients over-reporting compliance. Electronic pillboxes (medical event monitoring system [MEMS]) reveal significant discrepancies compared to visual analogue scale (VAS) and questionnaire methods.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacology and Therapeutics
- Clinical Pharmacy Practice
- Patient Adherence Research
Background:
- Accurate assessment of medication adherence is crucial for effective cardiovascular disease management.
- Traditional self-report methods for adherence may be subject to bias and inaccuracies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the accuracy of self-reported adherence to cardiovascular medications.
- To compare self-report measures against objective monitoring using electronic pillboxes (medical event monitoring system [MEMS]).
Main Methods:
- Prospective study involving 78 outpatients with cardiovascular risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia).
- Participants used MEMS for 10 weeks while completing visual analogue scale (VAS) and a validated questionnaire at baseline.
- Adherence was monitored for an average of 75 days using MEMS, VAS, and questionnaire data.
Main Results:
- A significant majority (78.8%) of participants over-reported their adherence on the VAS.
- VAS scores showed poor correlation with MEMS adherence data for timing, dosing, and self-administration.
- No significant correlation was found between questionnaire-based adherence and MEMS recordings.
Conclusions:
- Self-report measures (VAS and questionnaire) are insufficiently accurate for assessing cardiovascular medication adherence.
- Over-reporting of adherence is common, highlighting the limitations of subjective assessment methods.
- Objective monitoring, such as MEMS, is recommended for reliable detection of poor medication compliance.
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