Medication Adherence and Its Associated Factors Among Patients With Diabetes and Hypertension: A Patient-Level Health Claims Analysis

Abstract

Good diabetes and hypertension control requires adherence to medication, sub-optimal adherence is a major problem in long-term pharmacotherapy. The study aimed to analyse medication adherence and factors associated with it at the patient level, based on health claims data. One observational study was performed in 24,084 patients who had diabetes or hypertension. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to determine demographic, clinical, insurance, claims and medication-utilization characteristics. Overall, 40.15% of patients were adherent and 59.85% non-adherent. Diabetic patients had a 43.87% adherence rate and 39.22% adherence rate in patients with hypertension. Higher the age, higher the adjusted odds of adherence and higher the male gender, lower the odds of adherence. Medication use, disease classification, insurance scheme and annual claim amount also were each independently linked to adherence. Patients with diabetes and hypertension were non-adherent with their medicines. Patient-level claims data can be used to derive characteristics that are associated with adherence and assist with targeted medication monitoring, counselling and chronic disease management.