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Medication adherence and cost‐related medication non‐adherence in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: A cross‐sectional study
Author(s) -
Heidari Parvaneh,
Cross Wendy,
Weller Carolina,
Nazarinia Mohammadali,
Crawford Kimberley
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
international journal of rheumatic diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.795
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1756-185X
pISSN - 1756-1841
DOI - 10.1111/1756-185x.13549
Subject(s) - medicine , rheumatoid arthritis , cross sectional study , medication adherence , rheumatology , outpatient clinic , physical therapy , pathology
Aim First, to assess the clinical characteristics and medication adherence to oral rheumatoid arthritis (RA) medications in patients with RA. Second, to examine adherence determinants with a focus on the effect of medication out‐of‐pocket (OOP) costs on medication adherence to oral RA medications. Lastly, to examine cost‐related medication non‐adherence (CRN) in patients with RA. Methods A cross‐sectional study of patients with RA was conducted at rheumatology outpatient clinics in Shiraz, Iran. The data collection survey consisted of 5 sections including demographic questions, disease‐related questions, Compliance Questionnaire Rheumatology (CQR), CRN questions and an open‐ended question. SPSS version 24 was used for analysis. Results A total of 308 completed surveys were collected. Adherence to oral RA medications was 40.3%. Just under 20% of participants were biologic disease‐modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) users and these bDMARDs users were 0.82 times less likely to be adherent to their oral RA medications compared to non‐bDMARDs users ( P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant association between OOP costs and adherence to oral RA medications ( P > 0.05). However, 28.7% of participants reported not refilling, delaying to refill, skipping doses or taking smaller doses due to cost. In findings of the open‐ended question, medication costs and affordability were the most commonly mentioned barriers to medication adherence. Conclusion Non‐adherence to oral RA medications was prevalent among Iranian patients with RA and OOP costs were a barrier to medication adherence.