OBJECTIVES

This study aims to estimate medication adherence and factors associated with poor adherence among patients with stable COPD.

METHODS

A cross-sectional retrospective research among outpatient stable COPD patients in China was conducted in a general tertiary hospital. Inclusion criteria were listed as follows: the principal diagnosis of COPD, duration of stability at least one month, age≥18 years. Patients with inadequate literacy were excluded. Adherence was measured using the Chinese version of the Medication Adherence Rating Scale. Other information collected in the questionnaire included demographic characteristics, disease characteristics, medication regimen, and medical services. Single factor analyses were preliminarily used to identify these factors that might affect adherence. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to confirm the association between adherence and factors further.

RESULTS

A total of 786 patients with stable COPD were included in this study. Single factor analyses prompted that adherent patient was likely to be younger, highly educated, optimistic and have a severe condition. However, the complexity of regimen and inhaler, smoking, low incomes seemed to be associated with non-adherence. In the logistic regression analyses, complexity of regimen (OR: 0.62, 95%CI: 0.43, 0.91) and inhaler (OR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.50, 0.87), smoking (OR: 0.61, 95%CI: 0.53, 0.75), low incomes (OR: 0.35, 95% CI: 0.12, 0.75) showed a significant negative association with adherence, while age (OR:1.05, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.09), education (OR:1.16, 95% CI: 1.07, 1.44), severe condition (OR: 1.09, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.61), optimistic feeling (OR: 1.55, 95% CI: 1.10, 2.18) presented an opposite result.

CONCLUSIONS

Poor medication adherence is common among patients with COPD in this study. Health care providers can regard age, education, illness, income level as identification elements to classify patients, while smoking, feeling, the complexity of treatment to adjust therapy plan.