[Factors associated with adherence to immunosuppressive therapy among transplant recipients]

Medication non-adherence and its associated factors among kidney transplant patients in a large teaching hospital in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

This study examines medication adherence among kidney transplant patients at St. Paul's Hospital Millennium Medical College (SPHMMC) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, focusing on the level of adherence and associated factors to immunosuppressant medicines.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 270 patients from October 2021 to January 2022 using a structured questionnaire analyzed with SPSS version 26. The prevalence of medication adherence was computed, and a binary logistic regression was fitted to estimate the association. Medication adherence level measurement in post-kidney transplant patients was assessed using the Simplified Medication Adherence Questionnaire (SMAQ) and Basel Adherence Assessment Scale in Immunosuppressants (BAASIS). A 95% confidence interval and p-value < 0.05 were used for statistical significance.

RESULTS

The study found that 71.5% of kidney transplant patients were male, with a median age of 37 and a mean duration of 3.55 years. Medication adherence in post-kidney transplant patients was 81.9%. Post-transplant duration above 5 years and missing follow-up visits more than two times was associated with a 92.6% and 91.2% in medication non-adherence rate respectively. Additionally, forgetfulness was associated with a 90.6%, non-adherence level compared to drug unavailability and financial reasons.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

The study indicates that our patients exhibit higher medication adherence than WHO-measured levels, suggesting the need for healthcare providers to strengthen their intervention, especially for those above 5 years post-kidney transplant. The reason for increased adherence could be explained by the health education program about the medication name, dosing, frequency of ingestion and adverse effects of the drug, and effects of non-adherence.

Muslim transplant recipients' family experiences following organ transplantation

Background

Despite the importance of family and its relationship to positive transplant outcomes, little is known about family experiences following organ transplantation from the perspective of the transplant recipients. The literature is also devoid of information that describes the family experiences of Muslim transplant recipients.

Aims

The purpose of this study was to describe Muslim transplant recipients' family experiences following organ transplantation.

Methods

A hermeneutical phenomenological approach was employed to determine the emergent themes present in the data. The sample was composed of 12 Muslim organ transplant recipients (heart, kidney and liver) living in Iran. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant.

Results

The primary constitutive pattern that emerged from the interview data was 'Altered Family Relationships' and three themes: fear in relationships, abnormal relationships, and the family at the centre of organ transplant issues.

Conclusions

There are several important findings in this study, notably that Muslim transplant recipients describe their family experiences following organ transplantation as 'altered' and not as they were pre-transplant. More research is needed that focuses on the family experience post-transplant, and how Muslim transplant recipient families are impacted by the transplant experience.

Noninfectious uveitis: strategies to optimize treatment compliance and adherence

Noninfectious uveitis includes a heterogenous group of sight-threatening ocular and systemic disorders. Significant progress has been made in the treatment of noninfectious uveitis in recent years, particularly with regard to the effective use of corticosteroids and non-corticosteroid immunosuppressive drugs, including biologic agents. All of these therapeutic approaches are limited, however, by any given patient’s ability to comply with and adhere to their prescribed treatment. In fact, compliance and adherence are among the most important patient-related determinants of treatment success. We discuss strategies to optimize compliance and adherence.