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Factors Associated with Non-attendance at a Follow-up Visit for Dyslipidemia Identified at Health Checkups: A
Yuta Taniguchi1,2, Masao Iwagami3,4,5,6, Takehiro Sugiyama2,3,4,7
1Department of Health Services Research, Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
Insights
Many individuals with dyslipidemia do not attend physician follow-up visits. Younger age, male sex, and lack of symptoms were linked to higher non-attendance rates for this cardiovascular disease risk factor.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Cardiology
- Health Services Research
Background:
- Dyslipidemia is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
- Regular physician follow-up is crucial for managing dyslipidemia detected during health checkups.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate factors associated with non-attendance at follow-up visits for dyslipidemia.
- To identify characteristics of individuals who do not attend recommended physician appointments after abnormal cholesterol levels are detected.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective cohort study using linked health checkup and medical claims data.
- Analysis of 33,503 individuals aged 40-74 with dyslipidemia from Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan.
- Multivariable logistic regression to identify factors associated with non-attendance within 180 days.
Main Results:
- Only 18.1% of individuals with dyslipidemia attended follow-up visits.
- Younger age, male sex, drinking habits, and absence of symptoms were associated with higher non-attendance.
- Lack of other health issues or prior physician visits also correlated with lower attendance rates.
Conclusions:
- Interventions are needed to address the low follow-up rates for dyslipidemia.
- Targeted systems to inform and encourage high-risk populations to attend follow-up visits are warranted.
Introduction:
Dyslipidemia increases the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Visiting a physician for follow-up is essential when dyslipidemia is detected during health checkups. We investigated factors associated with non-attendance at a follow-up visit for dyslipidemia.
Methods:
We conducted a retrospective cohort study using linked health checkups and medical claims data from individuals covered by National Health Insurance in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. Participants were 40-74 years old, underwent health checkups between April 2018 and March 2019, and had cholesterol levels exceeding the recommended levels to visit a physician. We excluded individuals who had visited physicians for dyslipidemia in the past year. We calculated the proportion of patients who had a follow-up visit with a physician within 180 days after their health checkup. Then, we investigated the demographic and clinical characteristics associated with non-attendance using a multivariable logistic regression model.
Results:
Among 33,503 individuals (median age, 66 years [interquartile range, 59-69 years]; females, 58.8%) with dyslipidemia at the health checkup, 18.1% attended follow-up visits. Younger age, male sex, drinking habits, and lack of symptoms were associated with higher odds of non-attendance. Participants who underwent health checkups at public facilities, lacked other abnormal results at health checkups, and had not visited physicians for other diseases were less likely to attend a follow-up visit. Among those with elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, those with relatively lower LDL-C levels were less likely to attend.
Conclusions:
Systems that inform high-risk populations of non-attendance and encourage follow-up visits are warranted.
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