Trends in Antihypertensive Medication Discontinuation and Low Adherence Among Medicare Beneficiaries Initiating Treatment From 2007 to 2012
Why the study?
Did rates of discontinuation and low adherence to antihypertensive medications improve among Medicare beneficiaries between 2007 and 2012?
Population
41,135 Medicare beneficiaries (5% sample) initiating antihypertensive medication between 2007 and 2012
Comparison
Antihypertensive medication initiation in 2012 vs Antihypertensive medication initiation in 2007
Design
Cohort
Follow-up
365 days
Authors
Discussion
Loading...
Member takes
Implication
Improved adherence trends among Medicare beneficiaries warrant continued monitoring; leaves open whether targeted interventions can further reduce discontinuation.
Structured PICO
Did rates of discontinuation and low adherence to antihypertensive medications improve among Medicare beneficiaries between 2007 and 2012?
P
Population
41,135 Medicare beneficiaries (5% sample) initiating antihypertensive medication between 2007 and 2012
I
Intervention
Antihypertensive medication initiation in 2012
C
Comparator
Antihypertensive medication initiation in 2007
O
Outcome
Discontinuation (no days of antihypertensive medication supply for the final 90 days of the 365 days after initiation) and low adherence (proportion of days covered <80% during the 365 days after initiation)
While low adherence to antihypertensive medications decreased among Medicare beneficiaries from 2007 to 2012, overall rates of discontinuation and non-adherence remain high.
Cite This Study
Tajeu et al. (2016) studied this question.