Skipping Meds Ups Hospitalization

Patients with type 2 diabetes whotake their oral medication only someof the time risk hospitalization. Usingdata from a managed care organization,researchers examined the linkbetween nonadherence and subsequenthospitalization in 900 adultpatients with type 2 diabetes. Theresults showed that, over a 12-monthperiod, 28.9% of the patients werenonadherent to the antihyperglycemicregimen. The risk of hospitalizationincreased by >2-fold inpatients with type 2 diabetes who hadbeen nonadherent to their oral medicationsthe year before.

The investigators noted that hospitalizationwas a strong possibilityeven after considering the effect ofother illnesses and the patients'adherence to hypertension- and cholesterol-lowering medications. Thestudy also showed that nonadherenceto high blood pressure? and cholesterol-lowering medication, seen in18.8% and 26.9% of the patients,respectively, was not significantlyconnected with an increased risk ofhospitalization. (The findings werereported in Diabetes Care, September2004.)