Therapeutic adherence among chronic heart failure patients: A retrospective study on 147 patients

Introduction Despite improved treatment options, heart failure (HF) remains one of the most common causes of death worldwide. Therapeutic adherence is a major stake in the treatment of chronic heart failure patients. Several definitions of therapeutic adherence have been proposed and include treatment compliance. Analyzing patient's adherence to treatment is important to identify early strategies reducing crises of HF decompensation and consequent unplanned hospitalizations Objective The aim of this study is to assess non-adherence risk factors and their clinical implications. Method It relies on a retrospective study conducted during September 2020 in the heart failure cardiology unit of IBN ROCHD University hospital. All the patients consulting in this unit were included. Morisky-Green survey has been translated to native to collect data. SPSS 20.0 was used to analyze data. Results One hundred and forty seven patients were included, with 61.2% of men. The mean age was 59.5 years old. Chronic heart failure major etiologies were ischemic cardiomyopathy (71.4%) and dilated cardiomyopathy (18.4%). Physical examination has revealed that 40.8% were NYHA I, 42.9% NYHA II, 14.3% NYHA III and 2% NYHA IV. The average Morisky Green score was 7.01. 42.9%, 36.7%, and 20.4% were respectively classified from having high to bad adherence to the treatment. Adherence degree and clinical state were significantly correlated (P = 0.006) Conclusion Interventions to improve medication adherence among HF patients have significant effects on their clinical state. Medication adherence should be assessed in regular follow-up visits with HF patients using a valid survey. Interventions are necessary for better adherence and should be a key part of HF self-care program.