A simple informative intervention in primary care increases statin adherence

• Published in: European journal of clinical pharmacology 2016-02, Vol.72 (2), p.227-234
• Main Authors: Casula, Manuela, Tragni, Elena, Piccinelli, Rossana, Zambon, Antonella, De Fendi, Luisa, Scotti, Lorenza, Corrao, Giovanni, Gambera, Marco, Catapano, Alberico Luigi, Filippi, Alessandro
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Chronic illnesses; Drug therapy; Dyslipidemias - drug therapy; Female; Humans; Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Male; Medication Adherence - statistics & numerical data; Middle Aged; Patient Education as Topic; Pharmacoepidemiology and Prescription; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Primary care; Primary Health Care; Statins
• ISSN: 0031-6970; 1432-1041
• DOI: 10.1007/s00228-015-1975-z

Purpose To assess the effectiveness of an informative intervention on general practitioners aimed at improving patients’ adherence to statin therapy. Methods In the local health unit (LHU) of Bergamo, Lombardy (Italy), each general practitioner received a synthetic scientific document on dyslipidaemia and statins and aggregated data on adherence in 2006 for his/her patients compared to the means in the LHU and in his/her working district. Furthermore, a sample of seven districts received also a table of adherence levels for single patients. Patient’s level data were retrieved from the health care utilisation databases of the LHU. Adherence parameters (proportion of patients with only one prescription, medication possession ratio [MPR] and proportion of non-persistent patients) were assessed after 1 year of follow-up. Results Overall, 5833 and 4788 new statin users were enrolled before and after the intervention, respectively. The percentage of patients with only one prescription decreased from 28.0 to 23.9 % ( p