Concordance Between Persons with Multiple Sclerosis and Treating Physician on Medication Effects and Health Status

BACKGROUND: As the number of treatment options for multiple sclerosis (MS) has expanded, alignment between physician and patient on effects of medication has emerged as important for medication persistence/discontinuation. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate physician–patient agreement levels on medication effect and health status. METHODS: Persons with MS (PwMS) (n=71) participated in a cross-sectional study collecting their satisfaction (using the Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication), intention to dis/continue treatment and global health perception; physicians assessed response to medication and global health status. RESULTS: Concordance between PwMS' assessment of medication effectiveness and physician’s assessment on response to medication, health status and EDSS were r(s)= 0.50, r(s)= 0.57 and r(s)= −0.58, respectively. CONCLUSION: The significant concordance attests to physician–patient effective communication and may contribute to improved medication adherence.