Impact of Adherence, Patient Perception, and Knowledge to Statin Therapy – A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Cardiovascular diseases and its risk factors, such as diabetes and hyperlipidemia, are common in Indian population. Statin utilization is high across the country and it is important to assess the adherence because it plays an important role in treatment outcome. Statin adherence is not studied well in India. This study aims at measuring the adherence, perception, and knowledge of individuals on statin therapy. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional observational study on 130 consented individuals visiting a tertiary care teaching hospital. Study was conducted for a duration of 9 months. METHODS AND MATERIALS: After obtaining approval from the institutional ethics committee the study subjects were assessed for knowledge, perception, and adherence to statin therapy using a systematically developed interview questionnaire. RESULTS: Good adherence was seen in 42.30% patients. Higher proportions of females were reported to have good adherence. Good adherence was observed in patients with a history of coronary heart disease and atorvastatin as monotherapy (P = 0.0029) and fixed dose combination (P = 0.0012), whereas lipid reduction was found directly related to type of adherence. Lack of knowledge, cost, re-fill issues, and adverse effects were some of the barriers identified. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSION: Knowledge and patient perception plays a very important role in determining the adherence to statin therapy. A history of coronary heart disease, choice of statin, and cost of therapy are the contributing factors to adherence. Patient counselling and improving the cost-effectiveness of statin therapy can be considered as interventional strategies to overcome adherence issues.