A recent analysis of published studies examined the clinical consequences of medication adherence. The British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology analysis found that medication adherence is linked with lower risks of needing to be hospitalised and of dying early.
Individuals aged 50 years and older who were considered to have good medication adherence had a 17% lower risk of having a hospitalisation due to any cause compared with those considered non-adherent. Good adherence was also associated with a 21% reduction in long-term mortality risk compared with medication non-adherence.
"This review has provided a comprehensive and systematic assessment of the evidence on the association between medication non-adherence and adverse health outcomes in older populations. It has highlighted the critical need for further research in this area," the authors wrote.
Editor's Note: "The Health Research Board (HRB) supports excellent research that improves people's health, patient care and health service delivery. We aim to ensure that new knowledge is created and then used in policy and practice. In doing so, we support health system innovation and create new enterprise opportunities."
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British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology