The results, which are perhaps not surprising, showed that kids and adolescents with IBD also do not take their medications. Not only do they not take medications as prescribed, but they are not taking their drugs as much as 50% of the time.
A total of 80 patients between the ages of 8 and 17 were involved in the study. Newly diagnosed patients might be less compliant overall, so half of the patients chosen were already under treatment. The two drugs that were included in the study were 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) and Purinethol (mercaptopurine). The researchers discovered that the bottles containing 5-ASA were only opened 48% of the time they should have been, and the Purinethol bottles were only opened 53% of the time they should have been. In addition, teens appeared to have a worse track record with their medications than younger children.
The authors of the study acknowledge that tracking the opening of the pill bottles is imperfect because there is no way of knowing how many pills (if any) were removed when the bottle was opened. When the full results are published, there will be more data, including levels of the drugs found in the blood, pharmacy records, and pill counts.
More about medications and compliance:
- Patients' Rights And Responsibilities
- Why Don't My Parents Trust Me To Take My Medications?
- When You Can't Afford Your Medication
- Tips for Organizing Your IBD Drugs
- Remembering to Take Your Medication
Source:
Lobato D, et al "Rates and predictors of oral medication adherence in pediatric IBD." Digestive Disease Week 2011. Abstract 454. Presented 9 May 2011.
