Factors influencing adherence towards oral hypoglycaemic agents- A cross-sectional study among patients with Type II Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Aims: The present study was conducted to assess the level of medication adherence and factors affecting adherence among Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients. Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was carried out among T2DM patients who were presented to the outpatient department of general medicine. A well-designed data collection form was used to gather information pertaining to various socio-demographic and medical variables. A previously validated and translated 8-item self-reported questionnaire was used to assess the level of medication adherence. Data was analysed using SPSS Version 29.0. Results: Among the total 369 subjects enrolled, a majority were found to be males, and the mean age of the population was observed as 56.84 ± 11.32. A total of 125 (33.8%) subjects were found to be within the category of high adherence, 161 (43.6%) subjects were found to have moderate level of adherence and 83 (22.4%) had low level of adherence. On analysis, various medical variables were found to have a statistically significant association with medication adherence. Conclusion: The findings of the present study would form the basis for all the future implications including education intervention programmes to improve the level of adherence towards anti-diabetic medications, which ultimately results in better health outcomes.

Keywords

• Diabetes mellitus
• Medication adherence
• Questionnaire
• Oral hypoglycaemic agents