A unique data set is providing researchers with some cluesinto the murky realm of medication adherence for patients who have hypertension.
Controlling hypertension can be a difficult task and increases the risk for cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. It is estimated that only 30% of patients treated for hypertension achieve their target blood pressure goals. For physicians, the question becomes: are these patients not responding to the initial therapy, or are they not taking their medications in the prescribed manner?
At the European Society of Cardiology Congress on September 1 in Vienna, Austria, Bernard Vrijens, MD, chief scientist with AARDEX Group's research and development center in Visé, Belgium, described a study based on a review of the company's electronically recorded drug dosing histories of 4783 patients prescribed once-daily antihypertensive drug therapy. The data showed that half the patients had stopped their treatment within 1 year and that 50% of . . . [Full Text of this Article]
