Medication Adherence in Kidney Transplant Recipients in an Urban Indian Setting

Medication nonadherence is a known problem after renal transplantation and can vary from one setting to another. Since it can lead to negative outcomes, it is important to develop intervention strategies to enhance adherence in a given setting using determinants identified through exploratory studies. We explored nonadherence in renal transplant recipients. A longitudinal survey was done with adult renal transplant recipients at a tertiary care public and two private hospitals of Kolkata. Subjects were followed-up for 1 year. After screening for medication adherence status by the four-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale, those admitting to potential nonadherence were probed further. A patient was deemed to be nonadherent if failing to take medicines on appointed time (doses missed or delayed by more than 2 h) more than three times in any month during the observation period. A pretested questionnaire was used to explore potential determinants of nonadherence. Data of 153 patients recruited over a 2-year were analyzed. The extent of nonadherence with immunosuppressant regimens was about 31% overall; 44% in the public sector and 19% in the private sector (P < 0.001). Nonadherence with other medication was around 19% in both the sectors. Several potential demographic, socioeconomic and psychosocial determinants of nonadherence were identified on univariate analysis. However, logistic regression analysis singled out only the economic status. This study had updated the issue of nonadherence in renal transplant recipients in the Indian setting. Strategies to improve medication adherence can be planned by relevant stakeholders on the basis of these findings.