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Adherence and persistence
with medication regimens is highly
relevant to disease outcomes
• Adherence to a medication regimen is generally defined as the extent to which
patients take medications as prescribed by their health care provider.1
• Methods that can be used to confirm adherence to a medication regimen include:
monitoring of pill count, monitoring of prescription refill rate, and patient use of
“smart” pill bottles, but these are all indirect measures.
•
Nonpersistence with antihypertensive therapy is associated with an increased
risk of myocardial infarction and stroke.2
1. Osterberg L, Blasche T. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:487-497.
2. Breekveldt-Postma NS et al. Curr Med Res Opin. 2008;24:121-127.
Prescription of a single-pill combination is associated with improved
adherence rates compared with free-combination therapy
SPC
(ACE inhibitor + CCB)
(n=2839)
88%
P<0.0001
Free combination
(ACE inhibitior + CCB)
(n=3367)
69%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
Medication possession ratio (MPR)*
*Defined
as the total number of days of therapy for medication dispensed/365 days of study follow-up
ACE, angiotensin-converting enzyme; CCB, calcium channel blocker; SPC, single-pill combination
Gerbino PP, Shoheiber O. Am J Health System Pharm. 2007;64:1279-1283.
100%
A new device* approved by the FDA1 can be included in
antihypertensive pills to monitor the adherence to treatment
• The ingestible sensor is made entirely of ingredients found in food and is activated
upon ingestion to transmit a unique number which is captured by an external patch.
• The ingestible sensor does not require any battery or antenna; it is powered by the
contact with stomach fluids.
• The ingestible sensor can be embedded in a drug
product and can be used for directly confirming
medication adherence, as part of a networked
wellness system.
• The networked system has already been tested
in hypertension and heart failure populations.
Edible sensor attached directly to a tablet
* The Ingestion Event Marker (IEM), by Proteus Health.
1. FDA approves digestible microchips to be placed in pills. Medscape. August 3, 2012.