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Updated: Oct 20, 2025

Differential Effects of Lipid-lowering Drugs in Modulating Morphology of Cholesterol Particles
Published on: November 10, 2017
Adherence and persistence in the use of statins and ezetimibe over 8 years in a real-life study
Fiorenzo Santoleri1, Alessia Romagnoli1, Alberto Costantini1
1ASL 3 Pescara General Hospital - Hospital Pharmacy, Abruzzo, Italy.
Background:
Adherence and persistence to treatment are crucial in statin therapy as they are synonymous with efficacy and quality of care. The aim of this study was the real-life assessment of adherence and persistence over eight years in treatment-naive patients receiving atorvastatin, lovastatin, simvastatin, pravastatin, ezetimibe.
Methods:
Adherence to treatment was calculated using the 'proportion of days covered' method and persistence as the difference between the start and end of the therapy under study.
Results:
Treatment adherence was consistently above 85% for all drugs under study in each year. Treatment persistence was shown to half halved already from the first year.
Conclusion:
Adherent patients had a higher persistence than non-adherent patients.
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