Predictors of Medication Adherence in the Elderly: The Role of Mental Health.

The aging population routinely has comorbid conditions requiring complicated medication regimens, yet nonadherence can preclude optimal outcomes. This study explored the association of adherence in the elderly with demographic, socioeconomic, and disease burden measures. Data were from the fifth visit (2011-2013) for 6,538 participants in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, conducted in four communities. The Morisky-Green-Levine Scale measured self-reported adherence. Forty percent of respondents indicated some nonadherence, primarily due to poor memory. Logit regression showed, surprisingly, that persons with low reading ability were more likely to report being adherent. Better self-reported physical or mental health both predicted better adherence, but the magnitude of the association was greater for mental than for physical health. Compared with persons with normal or severely impaired cognition, mild cognitive impairment was associated with lower adherence. Attention to mental health measures in clinical settings could provide opportunities for improving medication adherence.

Contribution of medications and risk factors to QTc interval lengthening in the atherosclerosis risk in communities (ARIC) study.

RATIONALE, AIMS, AND OBJECTIVES: Prolongation of the corrected QT (QTc) interval is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The association between QTc interval-prolonging medications (QTPMs) and risk factors with magnitude of QTc interval lengthening is unknown. We examined the contribution of risk factors alone and in combination with QTPMs to QTc interval lengthening. METHOD: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study assessed 15 792 participants with a resting, standard 12-lead electrocardiogram and ≥1 measure of QTc interval over 4 examinations at 3-year intervals (1987-1998). From 54 638 person-visits, we excluded participants with QRS ≥ 120 milliseconds (n = 2333 person-visits). We corrected the QT interval using the Bazett and Framingham formulas. We examined QTc lengthening using linear regression for 36 602 person-visit observations for 14 160 cohort members controlling for age ≥ 65 years, female sex, left ventricular hypertrophy, QTc > 500 milliseconds at the prior visit, and CredibleMeds categorized QTPMs (Known, Possible, or Conditional risk). We corrected standard errors for repeat observations per person. RESULTS: Eighty percent of person-visits had at least one risk factor for QTc lengthening. Use of QTPMs increased over the 4 visits from 8% to 17%. Among persons not using QTPMs, history of prolonged QTc interval and female sex were associated with the greatest QTc lengthening, 39 and 12 milliseconds, respectively. In the absence of risk factors, Known QTPMs and ≥2 QTPMs were associated with modest but greater QTc lengthening than Possible or Conditional QTPMs. In the presence of risk factors, ≥2 QTPM further increased QTc lengthening. In combination with risk factors, the association of all QTPM categories with QTc lengthening was greater than QTPMs alone. CONCLUSION: Risk factors, particularly female sex and history of prolonged QTc interval, have stronger associations with QTc interval lengthening than any QTPM category alone. All QTPM categories augmented QTc interval lengthening associated with risk factors.

Medication Adherence Based on Part D Claims for Patients With Heart Failure After Hospitalization (from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study).

Medication nonadherence is a common precipitant of heart failure (HF) hospitalization and is associated with poor outcomes. Recent analyses of national data focus on long-term medication adherence. Little is known about adherence of patients with HF immediately after hospitalization. Hospitalized patients with HF were identified from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities data were linked to Medicare inpatient and part D claims from 2006 to 2009. Inclusion criteria were a chart-adjudicated diagnosis of acute decompensated or chronic HF; documentation of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor/angiotensin receptor blocker (ACEI/ARB), ß blocker (BB), or diuretic prescription at discharge; and Medicare part D coverage. Proportion of ambulatory days covered was calculated for up to twelve 30-day periods after discharge. Adherence was defined as ≥80% proportion of ambulatory days covered. We identified 402 participants with Medicare part D: mean age 75, 30% men, and 41% black. Adherence at 1, 3, and 12 months was 70%, 61%, and 53% for ACEI/ARB; 76%, 66%, and 62% for BB; and 75%, 68%, and 59% for diuretic. Adherence to any single drug class was positively correlated with being adherent to other classes. Adherence varied by geographic site/race for ACEI/ARB and BB but not diuretics. In conclusion, despite having part D coverage, medication adherence after discharge for all 3 medication classes decreases over 2 to 4 months after discharge, followed by a plateau over the subsequent year. Interventions should focus on early and sustained adherence.

Assessing Medicare Part D claim completeness using medication self-reports: the role of veteran status and Generic Drug Discount Programs.

OBJECTIVE: Medicare Part D claims are commonly used for research, but missing claims could compromise their validity. This study assessed 2 possible causes of missing claims: veteran status and Generic Drug Discount Programs (GDDP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We merged medication self-reports from telephone interviews in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study with Part D claims for 6 medications (3 were commonly in GDDP in 2009). Merged records (4468) were available for 2905 ARIC participants enrolled in Part D. Multinomial logit regression provided estimates of the association of concordance (self-report and Part D, self-report only, or Part D only) with veteran and GDDP status, controlling for participant sociodemographics. RESULTS: Sample participants were 74±5 years of age, 68% white and 63% female; 19% were male veterans. Compared with females, male veterans were 11% [95% confidence interval (CI), 7%-16%] less likely to have matched medications in self-report and Part D and 11% (95% CI, 7%-16%) more likely to have self-report only. Records for GDDP versus non-GDDP medications were 4% (95% CI, 1%-7%) more likely to be in self-report and Part D and 3% (95% CI, 1%-5%) less likely to be in Part D only, with no difference in self-report only. CONCLUSIONS: Part D claims were more likely to be missing for veterans, but claims for medications commonly available through GDDP were more likely to match with self-reports. Although researchers should be aware of the possibility of missing claims, GDDP status was associated with a higher rather than lower likelihood of claims being complete in 2009.

Effects of an accelerated intravenous iron regimen in hospitalized patients with advanced heart failure and iron deficiency.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To assess the short-term efficacy and safety of an accelerated intravenous iron regimen in hospitalized patients with heart failure and iron deficiency. DESIGN: Prospective, single-arm, open-label study. SETTING: Large tertiary care medical center. PATIENTS: Thirteen patients with New York Heart Association class III-IV heart failure, anemia (hemoglobin level ≤ 12.0 g/dl), and iron deficiency (ferritin level < 100 ng/ml, or ferritin level of 100-300 ng/ml with transferrin saturation < 20%) hospitalized between April 2011 and December 2013. INTERVENTION: All patients received sodium ferric gluconate 250 mg in 100 ml of normal saline intravenously over 2 hours twice/day until the iron deficit was corrected or the patient was discharged. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Changes in hematologic parameters were assessed at 1-4 weeks after therapy. Patients received a mean ± standard deviation (SD) total iron dose of 1269 ± 207 mg over 3.4 ± 1.0 days. After a mean ± SD follow-up of 13.1 ± 5.6 days, intravenous iron increased hemoglobin level by 1.2 g/dl (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.45-1.9, p=0.005), ferritin level by 364.2 ng/ml (95% CI 129.7-598.7, p=0.007), and transferrin saturation by 10.5% (95% CI 6.5-14.6%, p<0.001). Changes in hemoglobin level did not correlate with volume status, as determined by differences in body weight. No significant changes in blood pressure or heart rate were observed. Adverse events were few and minor in severity (e.g., nausea, constipation, and abdominal discomfort). CONCLUSION: An accelerated intravenous iron regimen improved hematologic parameters and was well tolerated in hospitalized patients with advanced heart failure. A randomized multicenter trial comparing this regimen with placebo is warranted.