Tuberculosis (TB) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in South Africa. Poor TB treatment adherence (TBTA) is associated with sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors. This cross-sectional study investigated TBTA among TB patients aged 18 years and above. A sample of 110 TB patients participated in the study, of whom 65 (59%) were males and 45 (41%) females, with a mean age of 34.62 ± 9.77. Almost one-third (32%) of the respondents reported forgetting to take their medication. The reasons they gave for non-adherence to TB medication included: (i) simply forgot (21%); (ii) fell asleep/slept through dose time (13%); (iii) had problems taking pills at specified times (12%); (iv) were busy with other things (12%); (v) were away from home (11%); and (vi) drank alcohol (10%). Unlike prior studies, sex and age were not associated with TBTA. However, the following factors were significantly associated with TBTA: (i) the number of people living in a household and sharing the main meal of the day (X2 2 = 11.42; p = .003; V = 0,32) increased non-adherence in larger households; (ii) no one to take care of them or remind them to take their TB medication/take care of self (X2 1 = 4.90; p = .027; V = 0.21) increased non-adherence in the group who had someone taking care of them or reminding them to take their TB medication; and (iii) family support (t 108 = 2.08; p = .040; d = 0.43) increased non-adherence in the group who reported a higher level of family support. Counterintuitively, the results showed increased non-adherence among respondents who reported having someone taking care of or reminding them to take their TB medication and those who reported getting support from their family.
Human Sciences Research Council (Fri,) studied this question.