The 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-8) is reliable and valid in patients with hypertension, but to our knowledge validity has not been established for patients with asthma. The aim of ...the study was to determine the criterion validity of the MMAS-8 in patients with asthma. In the cross-sectional study patients older than 12 year were recruited when dispensed asthma medications in community pharmacies. Criterion validity of the scale was assessed through associations with asthma control and quality of life. Asthma control was assessed by the Asthma Control Test (ACT) and quality of life was evaluated by the Saint George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ). A total of 208 patients (mean age 56 years, 59% female) were included in the study. Almost all patients were prescribed inhaled corticosteroids (96%). Asthma was not controlled in 37% of the patients and 22% experienced at least one exacerbation requiring emergency room visit, hospitalization or treatment with oral corticosteroid therapy in the previous year. The 8-item MMAS was significantly associated with asthma control and quality of life. Patients who scored 8 points, <8 to >6 points and ≤6 points on the scale were considered to have high, medium and low adherence, respectively. High, medium and low adherence was found in 53%, 23% and 24% of the patients, respectively. As adherence improved from low to medium or from medium to high, the odds of asthma control increased by 1.7 times (OR 1.65, p = 0.027). Patients with high and medium adherence had SGRQ scores that were 6.1 and 5.3 points lower, respectively, compared with patients with low adherence. The MMAS-8 was found to be valid for assessing medication adherence and predicting health outcomes in patients with asthma.
Aims
To compare the influence of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) on the risk of lower extremity amputations in patients with type 2 ...diabetes in Slovenia.
Methods
This retrospective cohort study included patients aged 40 years or more who were administered a newly introduced SGLT2i or DPP-4i between June 2014 and June 2018. Patients treated with insulin at baseline and patients with a history of amputation were excluded. Patients were matched in a 1:1 ratio using propensity score matching. Survival analysis was performed; hazard ratio (HR) and ratios of cumulative hazards at 1, 2, 3, and 4 years were estimated. On-treatment and intention-to-treat approaches were used.
Results
The study cohort (mean age: 64 years) consisted of 2,939 new users of SGLT2i (empagliflozin, 59%; dapagliflozin, 41%) matched to 2,939 new users of DPP-4i. In the on-treatment analysis (median follow-up of 2 years), the incidence of amputations was higher in SGLT2i than in DPP-4i users (4.2 vs. 2.7 per 1,000 patient years), resulting in a HR of 1.58 (95% CI 0.85–2.92;
p
= 0.145). An intention-to-treat analysis yielded to similar HR of 1.86 (95% CI: 1.10–3.14;
p
= 0.020). There was no difference in amputation rates in the first two years, but SGLT2i users had a 2.81-fold higher (95% CI: 1.63–4.84;
p
= 0.007) cumulative hazard of amputation at 4 years than did DPP-4i users.
Conclusions
Compared with DPP-4i use, SGLT2i use did not result in a statistically significant higher overall risk of lower extremity amputations. However, the results suggest that SGLT2i may increase the risk of amputation with long-term use.
Anticholinergic burden has been widely studied in specific patient populations with specific conditions. However, the prevalence in the general population is poorly understood. This retrospective ...cross-sectional study was a nationwide database analysis of outpatient prescriptions of anticholinergic medications. The study was based on Slovenian health claims data of all outpatient prescriptions in 2018. Anticholinergic burden was evaluated using the Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden scale. Three age groups were analysed: children (≤18 years), adults (19-64 years) and older adults (≥65 years). Anticholinergic medications were prescribed to 29.8% of the participants; 7.6% were exposed to a clinically significant anticholinergic burden. The proportion of patients exposed to anticholinergic burden was highest in older adults (43.2%), followed by adults (25.8%) and children (20.7%). The most frequently prescribed medications with the highest anticholinergic activity were antipsychotics and medications for urinary diseases (42.8% and 40.2%, respectively). Medications with second highest activity were mostly antiepileptics (87.3%). Medications with possible anticholinergic activity included diverse therapeutic groups. Anticholinergic burden is highest in older adults but is also considerable among adults and children. Medications with anticholinergic activity belong to diverse therapeutic groups. Further research is needed on safe use of these medications in all age groups.
Background
Medication literacy refers to the ability of individuals to safely and appropriately access, understand and act on basic medication information. It is vital for correctly and safely using ...medications. General health literacy measures do not adequately address specific skills for medication literacy, and there are no general, self-administered, performance-based instruments for assessing patients’ medication literacy.
Objective
The aim was to develop and validate a self-administered performance-based questionnaire measuring functional medication literacy and to evaluate functional medication literacy among the Slovenian general population.
Setting
A random sample of adult Slovenian residents received the questionnaires at their home addresses.
Method
The initial content was derived from medication counselling literature. Thirteen patients and 14 healthcare professionals provided feedback about its comprehensibility, comprehensiveness, and difficulty thus supporting content and face validity. The developed questionnaire, comprising 30 items divided into 5 categories (dosage, adverse effects, interactions, precautions, and other information), was sent to a random sample of 1500 adult Slovenian residents. The overall validity of the questionnaire was assessed via reliability, criterion and discriminant validity using the Kuder–Richardson Formula 20, multiple linear regression and Mann–Whitney test. Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate medication literacy.
Main outcome measure
The psychometric properties of the questionnaire (reliability, content, face, criterion, and discriminant validity); level of functional medication literacy.
Results
A total of 402 residents returned eligible questionnaires (26.8% response rate). The Kuder–Richardson Formula 20 reliability coefficient for the whole questionnaire was 0.823. One item that did not demonstrate discriminant validity was deleted. Criterion validity was supported by a significant association between age and medication literacy (β = − 0.303). Income (β = 0.243) and current self-perceived health (β = 0.187) also were associated with medication literacy. The median of medication literacy score was 24 out of 29 points. Dosage-related items requiring understanding of long text instructions and the use of numeracy skills received the most incorrect answers.
Conclusion
A performance-based questionnaire measuring functional medication literacy among a general population with supported validity was developed. Slovenian residents encountered difficulties when dealing with items requiring prose literacy and numeracy skills, especially related to dosing. Special attention should be paid to low-income elderly with poor self-perceived health.
This study investigates the 10-year trend in the sedative and anticholinergic burden among older adults in Slovenia, with the aim of identifying opportunities to optimize pharmacotherapy in this ...population. A retrospective drug utilization analysis was conducted based on a national anonymized database of dispensed prescriptions from 2009 to 2019. The study employed the sedative load model and the anticholinergic cognitive burden scale to assess the sedative and anti cholinergic burden, respectively. The findings indicate that in 2019, 45.6 % and 40.8 % of older adults (≥ 65 years) used sedative and anticholinergic medications, respectively. A high sedative load and a clinically significant anticholinergic burden were observed in a considerable proportion of older adults (13.2 % and 11.2 %, respectively, in 2019). The age-standardized prevalence of sedative load and anti-cholinergic burden significantly decreased over the 10-year study period by 5.6 % and 1.7 %, respectively (absolute difference), while the prevalence of clinically significant anticholinergic burden remained stable. Notably, the age groups 85–89 years and above 90 years had an increase in the proportion of individuals with a clinically significant anticholinergic burden over the years. These results emphasize the need for targeted interventions, particularly in the oldest age groups, to promote safe and effective medication use among older adults.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA), compared with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors ...(DPP-4i) as add-on therapy on cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D).Design and settingA nationwide cohort study using three linked healthcare databases from Slovenia (outpatient prescription claims data, hospitalisation claims data and death registry data).ParticipantsPatients with T2D with newly introduced DPP-4i (n=3817), GLP-1RA (n=855) or SGLT2i (n=2851) add-on therapy between June 2014 and June 2018.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe primary outcome was a major adverse CV event (MACE), while the secondary outcomes were CV death and heart failure (HF). The effects of the antidiabetic medicine group on the risk of each outcome were estimated with Cox proportional hazards regression. Intention-to-treat and on-treatment approaches were used.ResultsIn the intention-to-treat analysis, SGLT2i as add-on therapy, when compared with DPP-4i, was associated with lower risk of MACE (HR=0.66; 95% CI 0.50 to 0.85; p=0.002) and CV death (HR=0.46; 95% CI 0.30 to 0.73; p=0.001). On-treatment analysis revealed lower HF risk in patients initiating SGLT2i (HR=0.54; 95% CI 0.30 to 0.99; p=0.047). In the intention-to-treat analysis, GLP-1RA add-on therapy was associated with a lower MACE risk when compared with DPP-4i (HR=0.64; 95% CI 0.43 to 0.97; p=0.034), but it had a non-significant effect on CV death (HR=0.62; 95% CI 0.34 to 1.14; p=0.128) and HF (HR=1.39; 95% CI 0.88 to 2.21; p=0.157). The results of on-treatment analyses were in agreement with the results of intention-to-treat analyses.ConclusionsSGLT2i and GLP-1RA improved CV morbidity and mortality in patients with T2D when compared with DPP-4i as an add-on therapy. The results of this study may serve as a basis for the selection of an optimal add-on antidiabetic medicine to reduce CV morbidity and mortality in patients with T2D in clinical practice.Trial registration numberEUPAS32558.
This umbrella review examined systematic reviews of deprescribing studies by characteristics of intervention, population, medicine, and setting. Clinical and humanistic outcomes, barriers and ...facilitators, and tools for deprescribing are presented. The Medline database was used. The search was limited to systematic reviews and meta-analyses published in English up to April 2022. Reviews reporting deprescribing were included, while those where depre-scribing was not planned and supervised by a healthcare professional were excluded. A total of 94 systematic reviews (23 meta--analyses) were included. Most explored clinical or humanistic outcomes (70/94, 74 %); less explored attitudes, facilitators, or barriers to deprescribing (17/94, 18 %); few focused on tools (8/94, 8.5 %). Reviews assessing clinical or humanistic outcomes were divided into two groups: reviews with
(39/70, 56 %; 16 reviewing specific deprescribing interventions and 23 broad medication optimisation interventions), and reviews with
(31/70, 44 %). Deprescribing was feasible and resulted in a reduction of inappropriate medications in reviews with
. Complex broad medication optimisation interventions were shown to reduce hospitalisation, falls, and mortality rates. In reviews of
a higher frequency of adverse drug withdrawal events underscores the importance of prioritizing patient safety and exercising caution when stopping medicines, particularly in patients with clear and appropriate indications.
Transitions of care often lead to medication errors and unnecessary healthcare utilization. Medication reconciliation has been repeatedly shown to reduce this risk. However, the great majority of ...evidence is limited to the provision of medication reconciliation within clinical trials and countries with well-established clinical pharmacy. Thus, this pragmatic, prospective, controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of routine pharmacist-led medication reconciliation compared to standard care on medication errors and unplanned healthcare utilization in adult general medical patients hospitalized in a teaching hospital in Slovenia. All patients hospitalized in a ward where medication reconciliation was integrated into routine clinical practice were included in the intervention group and received admission and discharge medication reconciliation, coupled with patient counselling. The control group consisted of randomly selected patients from the remaining medical wards. The primary study outcome was unplanned healthcare utilization within 30 days of discharge, and the secondary outcomes were clinically important medication errors at hospital discharge and serious unplanned healthcare utilization within 30 days of discharge. Overall, 414 patients (53.4% male, median 71 years) were included-225 in the intervention group and 189 in the control group. In the intervention group, the number of patients with clinically important medication errors at discharge was significantly lower (intervention vs control group: 9.3% vs 61.9%). Multiple logistic regression revealed that medication reconciliation reduced the likelihood of a clinically important medication error by 20-fold, while a higher number of medications on admission was associated with an increased likelihood. However, no significant differences were noted in any and serious unplanned healthcare utilization (intervention vs control group: 33.9% vs 27.8% and 20.3% vs 14.6%, respectively). The likelihood of serious healthcare utilization increased with the age of the patient, the number of medications on admission and being hospitalized for an acute medical condition. Our pragmatic trial confirmed that medication reconciliation, even when performed as part of routine clinical practice, led to a substantial reduction in the risk of clinically important medication errors at hospital discharge but not to a reduction in healthcare utilization. Medication reconciliation is a fundamental, albeit not sufficient, element to ensure patient safety after hospital discharge.
https://clinicaltrials.gov/search?id=NCT06207500, identifier NCT06207500.
Understanding potentially modifiable factors that influence the risk of frailty is a key concern for the management of this urgent contemporary public health challenge. This study evaluates the ...association between the use of various medications or alcohol and the incidence of frailty among older adults.
This study was a retrospective cohort study on older adults (≥ 65 years) using data from the longitudinal Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE survey, 28 countries). Medication use was measured as taking several different groups of medications. Alcohol use was assessed with SHARE questions corresponding to AUDIT-C. The outcome measure was the incidence of frailty after two years, defined by frailty index (FI) and frailty phenotype (FP). A multiple logistic regression model was used to evaluate the association with adjustment for several potential confounding factors.
Of the 14,665 FI-population participants, 1800 (12.3%) developed frailty within two years. Of the 8133 FP-population participants, 2798 (34.4%) developed pre-frailty and 247 (3.0%) developed frailty within two years of baseline. After adjustment for potential confounding variables, non-hazardous alcohol use (adjusted OR; 95% CI for the FI-population: 0.68; 0.60-0.77) and hazardous alcohol use (0.80; 0.68-0.93) are associated with lower incidence of frailty compared to no alcohol use. The odds of frailty are increased when taking medications; the largest effect size was observed in older adults taking medication for chronic bronchitis (adjusted OR; 95% CI for the FI-population: 2.45; 1.87-3.22), joint pain and other pain medication (2.26; 2.00-2.54), medication for coronary and other heart disease (1.72; 1.52-1.96), medication for diabetes (1.69; 1.46-1.96), and medication for anxiety, depression and sleep problems (1.56; 1.33-1.84). Additionally, the risk of frailty was increased with stroke, Parkinson's disease and dementia.
Taking certain groups of medication was associated with increased incidence of frailty and pre-frailty, which might be due to either medication use or the underlying disease. Alcohol use was associated with a lower risk of pre-frailty and frailty compared to no alcohol use, which might be due to reverse causality or residual confounding. There was no significant interaction effect between medication groups and alcohol use on frailty incidence.
The aim of the study was to assess the initiation of insulin therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes using health claims data on prescription medicines. The study evaluated time to insulin ...initiation and prescribing patterns of other anti-diabetic medicines before and after insulin initiation. Five years after starting non-insulin antidiabetic therapy, 6.4 % of patients were prescribed insulin, which is substantially lower compared to other similar studies. Among all patients who initiated insulin therapy in 2013, 30 % did not continue any other antidiabetic therapy. However, this proportion was lowered to 20 % in 2018. Before insulin initiation in 2018, metformin was prescribed in only 67 % of patients and sulfonylureas in 78 % of patients. Moreover, metformin and sulfonylureas were discontinued after insulin initiation in 26 and 37 % of patients, resp. More attention should be paid to the continuation of oral anti-diabetics, particularly metformin, after insulin initiation.
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