Baseline Characteristics and Secondary Medication Adherence Patterns Among Patients Receiving Tafamidis...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Pharmacology
• Medical Outcomes

Background:

• Transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) is a severe, often underdiagnosed condition leading to heart failure and mortality.
• Historically, heart transplantation was the primary treatment for ATTR-CM.
• Tafamidis has emerged as a transformative treatment option for ATTR-CM patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate real-world medication adherence patterns for tafamidis in patients with ATTR-CM.
• To investigate adherence using secondary measures in a large patient cohort.
• To compare adherence across different demographic and geographic subgroups.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of the Symphony Health Solutions claims database.
• Inclusion of 2020 patients filling tafamidis formulations (free acid or meglumine).
• Assessment of adherence using modified medication possession ratio (MPRm), days between fills, and compliance rates from June 2019 to August 2020.

Main Results:

• High adherence to tafamidis was observed, with 75%–100% of patients meeting the ≥80% adherence threshold.
• The median number of refills per patient was six, with most patients experiencing no gap or a gap of less than 30 days between refills.
• Adherence remained high across follow-up time, sex, and age subgroups, though regional variations were noted (Northeast higher than Midwest).

Conclusions:

• Real-world adherence to tafamidis in patients diagnosed with ATTR-CM is demonstrably high.
• These findings suggest favorable medication adherence contributes to effective management of ATTR-CM.
• High adherence supports the clinical utility of tafamidis in improving outcomes for ATTR-CM patients.