Work

Prevalence and Correlates of Low Medication Adherence in Apparent Treatment‐Resistant Hypertension

Year: 2012

Type: article

Abstract: Low medication adherence may explain part of the high prevalence of apparent treatment-resistant hypertension (aTRH). The authors assessed medication adherence and aTRH among 4026 participants taking ≥ 3 classes of antihypertensive medication in the population-based Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) trial using the 4-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS). Low adherence was defined as an MMAS score ≥ 2. Overall, 66% of participants taking ≥ 3 classes of antihypertensive medication had aTRH. Perfect adherence on the MMAS was reported by 67.8% and 70.9% of participants with and without aTRH, respectively. Low adherence was present among 8.1% of participants with aTRH and 5.0% of those without aTRH (P<.001). Among those with aTRH, female sex, residence outside the US stroke belt or stroke buckle, physical inactivity, elevated depressive symptoms, and a history of coronary heart disease were associated with low adherence. In the current study, a small percentage of participants with aTRH had low adherence.

Source: Journal of Clinical Hypertension

DOI: 10.1111/j.1751-7176.2012.00690.x