Patient Prefer Adher
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Patient Prefer Adher · Jan 2014
Patient attitudes towards a new role for pharmacists: continued dispensing.
In Australia, "continued dispensing" (CD) is a new model for supply of prescription medications. Under specific circumstances, community pharmacists are allowed to dispense a further one month supply of prescription only medications without a valid prescription. It allows continuation and treatment adherence when patients run out of statin and/or oral contraceptive (OC) medications, when it is not practical or they fail to plan accordingly to get a new prescription. ⋯ Australian users of statin and OC medications showed a high level of support for CD. Given that a significant proportion of patients temporarily stopped treatment when they ran out of medications and had no valid prescription, implementation of CD may alleviate the negative consequences of therapy interruption in statin and OC users in the short term. Longer-term solutions and opportunities to expand CD require further exploration.
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Patient Prefer Adher · Jan 2014
Patient perspectives on switching disease-modifying therapies in the NARCOMS registry.
The evolving landscape of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis raises important questions about why patients change DMTs. Physicians and patients could benefit from a better understanding of the reasons for switching therapy. ⋯ Participants frequently initiated the discussion regarding changing DMT, although physician recommendations regarding the specific therapy were still weighed highly. Long-term follow-up of these participants will provide valuable information on their disease trajectory, satisfaction with, and effectiveness of their new medication.
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Patient Prefer Adher · Jan 2014
Use of family member-based supervision in the management of patients with hypertension in rural China.
Medication nonadherence is a major problem in the management of hypertension. The aim of this study was to develop a family member-based supportive therapy for patients with hypertension to provide an affordable way to access essential health services and to ensure adequate control of blood pressure. This study applied a mixed methods approach using qualitative and quantitative study designs in Yangzhong County, a rural area in the People's Republic of China. ⋯ After the 6-month intervention, the proportion of patients with uncontrolled blood pressure decreased from 87.2% to 45.7%. This pilot study shows that external supervision by family members is acceptable and feasible for patients with hypertension; it also shows favorable effects with regard to improved treatment adherence and blood pressure control. Future randomized controlled trials with modified intervention measures are needed to validate this finding.
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Patient Prefer Adher · Jan 2014
Orthodontic treatment need for adolescents in the Campania region: the malocclusion impact on self-concept.
Dental malocclusions can be considered not only as an oral health problem, because they are linked to quality of life perception. Many factors related to malocclusion have strong influences on the perception of facial esthetics (eg, anterior tooth alignment, tooth shape and position, lip thickness, symmetric gingival or tooth contour, lip profile, and overjet). Many reports have shown that the perception of facial esthetics can influence psychological development from early childhood to adulthood. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of dental malocclusion on self-esteem in a sample of adolescents. ⋯ Our findings confirm the relationship between psychosocial well-being, self-esteem, and dental malocclusion among adolescents.
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Patient Prefer Adher · Jan 2014
Acceptability of bone antiresorptive therapy among HIV-infected adults at different stages of antiretroviral therapy.
Both HIV infection and antiretroviral therapy (ART) are associated with significant decreases in bone mineral density (BMD) and increased fracture rates. To prepare for a randomized controlled trial of prophylactic bone antiresorptive therapy during ART initiation, we assessed the acceptability of this strategy, bone health knowledge, and fracture risk among HIV-infected adults. ⋯ Half of this sample would be willing to take bone antiresorptive therapy together with ART, with preferences for weekly dosing and for whatever duration may be required. These data will inform the design of future trials to protect bone health in HIV.