Risk Management and Healthcare Policy (Mar 2024)
Factors Associated with Non-Adherence to Treatment Among Migrants with MDR-TB in Wuhan, China: A Cross-Sectional Study
Abstract
Kunhe Lin,1 Li Xiang1,2 1Department of Health Management, School of Medicine and Health Management, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 2HUST Base of National Institute of Healthcare Security, Wuhan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Li Xiang, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Hangkong Road 13, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]: Multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) has attracted increasing attention in achieving the global goal of tuberculosis (TB) control. China has the second largest TB burden worldwide and has been experiencing large-scale domestic migration. This study aims to explore the effect of migrants on non-adherence to MDR-TB treatment.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out in Wuhan, China. The exposure cases were migrants who were not locally registered in the residence registration system. The control cases were local residents. Non-adherence cases were patients who were lost follow-up or refused treatment. Chi-square and t-test were used to compare variables between migrants and local residents. Logistic regression models using enter method were used to determine the relationship between migration and non-adherence to treatment. Moderation and medication effects on the association between migrant status and non-adherence were also explored.Results: We studied 73 migrants and 219 local residents. The migrants, who did not to adhere to treatment (55, 75.3%), was far higher than that of local residents (89, 40.6%). Migrants with MDR-TB had 10.38-times higher difficulty in adhering to treatment (adjusted OR = 10.38, 95% CI 4.62– 25.28) than local residents. This additional likelihood was moderated by age and treatment registration group. Migration had an indirect association with non-adherence to treatment via social medial insurance (adjusted OR = 1.05, 95% CI 1.01– 1.13).Conclusion: There a significant increased likelihood of non-adherence to treatment among migrants with MDR-TB, highlighting the importance of improving treatment adherence in this population. Migration prevented migrants from gaining access to social medical insurance and indirectly reduced their likelihood of adherence to treatment.Keywords: MDR-TB, migrant, treatment adherence, medical insurance, out-of-pocket