Association of Depression and Adherence to Oral Anticoagulation in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: Adherence to oral anticoagulation is essential for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation (AF). Depression has been associated with decreased adherence to medications in multiple disease states and in AF is further associated with increased risk of stroke. We hypothesized that individuals with depression and AF have decreased adherence to anticoagulation than those without depression. METHODS AND RESULTS: We used administrative claims data to identify individuals with AF initiating anticoagulation with direct-acting oral anticoagulants (DOACs) or warfarin between 2013 and 2019. We quantified adherence using proportion of days covered, categorized as limited (proportion of days covered, <80%), adequate (proportion of days covered, ≥80% to <90%), or optimal (proportion of days covered, ≥90%). We related depression to 12-month adherence to anticoagulation in logistic regression models, adjusting for demographics, medical and psychiatric comorbidities, household income, educational attainment, and insurance type. As a secondary analysis, we determined the association of depression to adherence for each DOAC agent. We identified 101 041 individuals (aged 74.5±8.9 years; 50.6% women; 29.5% race or ethnicity other than White, including Asian or Black race and Hispanic ethnicity) who initiated either DOACs or warfarin. The odds of adequate adherence to DOACs was 11% (95% CI, 0.85-0.93), and the odds of optimal adherence was 12% (95% CI, 0.83-0.91) less in individuals with depression than those without. Depression was not associated with adherence to warfarin. CONCLUSIONS: We identified an association between depression and decreased adherence to DOACs but not warfarin in individuals with AF. Recognizing depression in AF may guide interventions to improve anticoagulation adherence and reduce stroke risk.

Association of patient copayment and medication adherence in systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association of medication copayment and treatment adherence to hydroxychloroquine and immunosuppressants for SLE. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of health claims data using Optum's de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database. Individuals with SLE continuously enrolled for 180 days from 1 July 2010 to 31 December 2019 were included. Adherence was defined as the proportion of days covered ≥80%. Copayment for a 30-day supply of medication was dichotomised as high (≥$10) or low (<$10). We examined the association between copayment and odds of adherence in multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models, including age, sex, race or ethnicity, comorbidities, educational attainment and household income. RESULTS: We identified 12 510 individuals (age 54.2±15.5 years; 88.2% female sex), of whom 9510 (76%) were prescribed hydroxychloroquine and 1880 (15%) prescribed hydroxychloroquine and an additional immunosuppressant (azathioprine, methotrexate or mycophenolate mofetil). Median (IQR) 30-day copayments were $8 (4-10) for hydroxychloroquine, $7 (2-10) for azathioprine, $8 (3-11) for methotrexate and $10 (5-20) for mycophenolate mofetil. High copayments were associated with OR of adherence of 0.61 (95% CI 0.55 to 0.68) for hydroxychloroquine, OR 0.44 (95% CI 0.30 to 0.66) for azathioprine and OR 0.69 (95% CI 0.49 to 0.96) for mycophenolate mofetil. For methotrexate, the association was not significant. CONCLUSION: In a large, administrative health claims database, we identified that high copayments were associated with reduced adherence to commonly prescribed medications for SLE. Incorporating awareness of the burden of copayments and its consequences into healthcare is essential to promote optimal medication adherence.

Income and antiplatelet adherence following percutaneous coronary intervention.

Objective: To investigate the relation of annual household income to antiplatelet adherence following PCI. Background: Treatment with 6-12 months of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is a Class I recommendation. Adherence to these medications is essential to reduce risk of stent thrombosis and recurrent ischemic events. Social risk factors like household income modify how patients access and adhere to essential pharmacologic therapies such as antiplatelet agents. Methods: We identified individuals presenting with PCI in an administrative claims database of commercially insured and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries from 2017 to 2019. We collected data on age, sex, race, ethnicity, educational attainment, and covariates (prevalent coronary disease, medications, healthcare visits, insurance type, copay, antiplatelet medications, and Elixhauser Comorbidity Index conditions). We related annual household income, categorized as <$40,000; $40-49,999; $50-59,999; $60-74,999; $75-99,999; and ≥$100 K, to proportion of days covered (PDC) in multivariable-adjusted regression models. We defined non-adherence as PDC <80%. Results: Our dataset included 90,163 individuals (age 69.0 ± 10.9 years, 33.1% women, 25.1% non-White race) who underwent PCI. We observed graded, decreased antiplatelet adherence across income categories: rates of PDC≥80% decreased with successively lower income. Individuals with annual income <$40,000 had 1.5-fold higher odds of non-adherence (95% CI, 1.40-1.56) compared to those with income ≥$100,000 after multivariable adjustment. Conclusions: In a claims-based analysis, we determined that lower income is associated with decreased likelihood of adherence to antiplatelet agents following PCI. Our results indicate the importance of considering social risk factors in the evaluation of barriers to antiplatelet adherence following PCI.

Assessment of Depression and Adherence to Guideline-Directed Medical Therapies Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Importance: Depression is associated with increased risk of primary and secondary cardiovascular events. Medication adherence may play an essential role. Objective: To evaluate the association of depression and 12-month adherence to guideline-directed medical therapies (eg, antiplatelet agents, ß-blockers, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors [ie, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers], and statins) following percutaneous coronary intervention. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective cohort study included individuals who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention from January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2019. Data were collected from a large US health claims database and analyzed between February and August 2022. Main Outcomes and Measures: Proportion of days covered (PDC) for classes of guideline-directed medical therapies, with 12-month adherence categorized as adequate (PDC ≥80% to <90%) or optimal (PDC ≥90%). Multivariable-adjusted regression models were used to evaluate the association of depression with adherence; models incorporated demographic characteristics, comorbid medical and psychiatric conditions, depression treatment, and guideline-directed medical therapy treatment adjustment. The hypothesis was that those with depression would have lower odds of either adequate or optimal adherence to agents essential for guideline-directed medical therapy. Results: Of 124 443 individuals (mean [SD] age, 69.3 [10.6] years; 41 430 [33.3%] female sex; 3694 [3.0%] Asian, 12 611 [10.1%] Black, and 12 337 [9.9%] Hispanic individuals) who received percutaneous coronary interventions, 20 711 (16.6%) had a diagnosis of depression. Those with depression were significantly less likely to obtain adequate 12-month adherence to antiplatelets (odds ratio [OR], 0.80; 95% CI, 0.77-0.85), ß-blockers (OR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.80-0.88), and statins (OR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.85-0.93) than those without depression; there was no association between depression and adherence to renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors (OR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.85-1.00). Those with depression had similarly decreased likelihood of optimal 12-month adherence to antiplatelets, ß-blockers, and statins as well as renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.82-0.94). Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, patients with depression were less likely to achieve adequate or optimal adherence to medications essential to guideline-directed medical therapies following percutaneous coronary intervention compared with those without depression. Recognition of depression may facilitate targeted interventions to address medication adherence and thereby improve secondary cardiovascular disease prevention.

Relation of Household Income to Access and Adherence to Combination Sacubitril/Valsartan in Heart Failure: A Retrospective Analysis of Commercially Insured Patients.

BACKGROUND: Outcomes in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) are influenced by access and adherence to guideline-directed medical therapy. Our objective was to study the association between annual household income and: (1) the odds of having a claim for sacubitril/valsartan among insured patients with HFrEF and (2) medication adherence (measured as the proportion of days covered). We hypothesized that lower annual household income is associated with decreased odds of having a claim for and adhering to sacubitril/valsartan. METHODS: Using the Optum de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart, patients with HFrEF and ≥6 months of enrollment for follow-up (2016-2020) were included. Covariates included age, sex, race, ethnicity, educational attainment, US region, number of prescribed medications, and Elixhauser Comorbidity Index. Prescription for sacubitril/valsartan was defined by the presence of a claim within 6 months of HFrEF diagnosis. Adherence was defined as proportion of days covered ≥80%. We fit multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models and hierarchical logistic regression accounting for covariates. RESULTS: Among 322 007 individuals with incident HFrEF, 135 282 had complete data for analysis. Of the patients eligible for sacubitril/valsartan, 4.7% (6372) had a claim within 6 months of HFrEF diagnosis. Following multivariable adjustment, individuals in the lowest annual income category (<$40 000) were significantly less likely (odds ratio, 0.83 [95% CI, 0.76-0.90]) to have a sacubitril/valsartan claim within 6 months of HFrEF diagnosis than those in the highest annual income category (≥$100 000). Annual income <$40 000 was associated with lower odds of proportion of days covered ≥80% compared with income ≥$100 000 (odds ratio, 0.70 [95% CI, 0.59-0.83]). CONCLUSIONS: Lower household income is associated with decreased likelihood of a sacubitril/valsartan claim and medication adherence within 6 months of HFrEF diagnosis, even after adjusting for sociodemographic and clinical factors. Future analyses are needed to identify additional social factors associated with delays in sacubitril/valsartan initiation and long-term adherence.