Follow-Up Factors Contribute to Immunosuppressant Adherence in Kidney Transplant Recipients

• Published in: Patient preference and adherence 2022-01, Vol.16, p.2811-2819
• Main Authors: Chen, Tingting, Wang, Yuzhu, Tian, Dan, Zhang, Jieqing, Xu, Qing, Lv, Qianzhou, Li, Xiaoyu, Wang, Jina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Dosage and administration; Drug dosages; Evaluation; follow-up; Hyperlipidemia; Hypertension; Immunosuppressive agents; immunosuppressive medication; Informed consent; Internet; internet-based survey; kidney transplantation; Kidney transplants; Kidneys; medication adherence; Multivariate analysis; Original Research; Patient compliance; Patient outcomes; Questionnaires; Risk factors; Statistical significance; Transplantation
• ISSN: 1177-889X; 1177-889X
• DOI: 10.2147/PPA.S383243

Purpose: Follow-up and immunosuppressive medication (ISM) adherence are both important for kidney transplant recipients postoperatively and whether follow-up factors affect the ISM adherence remains unclear. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between follow-up factors and ISM adherence, and the factors associated with ISM adherence. Patients and Methods: An internet-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in a single kidney transplant center in China. The participants completed the internet-based questionnaire and the Basel Assessment of Adherence to Immunosuppressive Medication Scale (BAASIS[c]) from January 12 to January 26, 2021. Results: Finally, 288 (66.7%) participants responded to this survey. The percentage of full adherence to immunosuppressant was 51.7% (149/288), with 33.3% of the participants reporting a problem in timing dimension. We found that follow-up with a fixed doctor was significantly positive to good adherence (OR=2.124, 95% CI=1.111-4.062, P=0.023) after analyzing the survey data. Time since kidney transplantation and number of non-immunosuppressants were both associated with immunosuppressant adherence. No significant difference was found regarding the effect of the follow-up adherence on ISM adherence. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated an insufficient prevalence of adherence to immunosuppressant in Chinese renal transplant recipients and revealed that follow-up with a fixed doctor may be a way to improve the patients' ISM adherence. This anonymous internet-based survey provides valuable insight into the actual adherence rate, factors associated with non-adherence, and situations that may improve medication-taking. Keywords: immunosuppressive medication, medication adherence, follow-up, internet-based survey, kidney transplantation