A review of measures used to examine medication adherence in people with ADHD at initiation, implementation and discontinuation of pharmacotherapy

Muhammad Umair Khan*, Parisa Aslani

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: Adherence to prescribed medication is a dynamic process that changes over time. Whilst several measures have been used to examine adherence in patients with ADHD, it is not clear how these measures have been used to measure adherence in the context of its three phases (initiation, implementation, discontinuation). Objective: To examine measures used to assess medication adherence at its three phases in people with ADHD. Methods: The PRISMA guidelines were followed for this review. Six databases (Medline, PubMed, IPA, CINAHL, Embase, and PsycINFO) were systematically searched in October 2018, without any limitations on the start dates. Keywords reflecting three broad concepts (adherence, ADHD and measures) were used as part of the search strategy. Studies that assessed medication adherence in people with ADHD and described methods used to assess adherence were selected for this review. Results: Forty-nine studies were included. Most (69.3%) examined adherence at the implementation phase. Claims databases, self-reported questionnaires, and prescription-refill records were used to measure adherence at the initiation, implementation, and discontinuation phase, respectively. Overall, self-reported questionnaires were the most frequently used measure at the implementation phase, but the psychometric properties were not reported in almost half of the studies that used these measures. Conclusions: Initiation and discontinuation phases of adherence have been relatively less examined in people with ADHD. Although self-reported questionnaires were the commonly used measures, the validity and reliability of these measures are of concern in guiding evidence-based practice. Measures with improved psychometric properties are needed that can examine adherence across its three phases.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)277-289
Number of pages13
JournalResearch in social and administrative pharmacy
Volume16
Issue number3
Early online date6 Jun 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 11 Mar 2020

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Inc.

Keywords

  • ADHD
  • Adherence
  • Discontinuation
  • Implementation
  • Initiation
  • Measure

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