study about drug compliance among hypertensive patients attending Asssiut University Hospitals

ABSTRACT

This study was performed on 203 hypertensive patients. Data were collected using a structural interview questionnaire. Only 61.6% of the hypertensive patients were subjected to treatment of hypertension. Over two thirds of the patients had either poor or no knowledge of normal blood pressure range, predisposing factors, symptoms and signs and complications of hypertension. 46.3% of the included patients had problems in compliance to treatment as remembering, cost of treatment or side effects of medication and 58.5% of them were not compliant to treatment compared with 21.1% of those who had no such problems. 57.6% of the patients had difficulties in the follow up and 45.3% of them were not compliant to treatment compared with 29.1% of those who had no difficulties. Poor compliance was associated with severe hypertension, increased number and side effects of medications as well as difficulties in the follow up. Various strategies were recommended in order to improve the patient compliance, including health educational programs, self-measurement of blood pressure and monitoring of compliance