Antihypertensive Medication Adherence and Associated Factors: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Patients Attending a National Referral Hospital in Asmara, Eritrea

BACKGROUND: Recent research suggests that poor adherence to antihypertensive medication (AHM) is a major problem in the management of hypertension. This study was therefore designed to evaluate the frequency of AHM and associated risk factors in patients attending a national referral hospital in Asmara, Eritrea. METHODS: A total of 335 respondents (females: 222 (66.3%) participated in this cross-sectional study. Adherence to Medication was evaluated using a modified version of the Medication Adherence Report Scale (MARS). Additional data were abstracted from patients' medical records and a WHO STEPwise questionnaire. RESULTS: The mean (±SD) age of the study participants was 59.65 (±12.20) years (females: 56.82 (±9.95) vs males: 57.17 (±9.60) years, p-value=0.001). Similarly, the median (IQR) for diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) were 85.00 mmHg (IQR: 80.00-90.00 mmHg) and 145.00 mmHg (IQR: 130.00-160.00 mmHg), respectively. Overall, 246 (73.4%) and 244 (72.8%) participants had poor knowledge and poor adherence to AHM, respectively. In the multivariate analysis, factors associated with increased odds of poor adherence to AHM included sex (females: adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 4.95; 95% CI: 1.52-16.11, p value=0.008); employment status (Ref: employed/NGO) (self-employed: aOR: 1.95; 95% CI: 0.45-8.48, p-value=0.373) (housewife: aOR: 0.13; 95% CI: 0.04-0.413, p-value=0.001) (unemployed: aOR: 1.38; 95% CI:0.32-5.98; p-value=0.670); lack of attendance of health talk at the clinic (aOR: 2.33; 95% CI: 1.17-4.63; p-value=0.016); high cost of transportation (yes: aOR: 6.87; 95% CI: 3.25-14.52; p-value<0.001); knowledge (poor: aOR: 6.23; 95% CI: 2.36-18.05, p-value<0.001) and hypertension stage (Stage 3: aOR: 5.55; 95% CI, 1.44-21.37, p-value=0.013). Low level of knowledge regarding hypertension-related complications or associated risk factors was also noted. CONCLUSION: The high level of poor adherence to anti-hypertension medications and low level of knowledge on hypertension should raise concern. Overall, decentralization of health care services and educational support are vital intervention pathways in this population.