New from PubMed:

Patient adherence to treatment methods can be a major influence on the effectiveness of treatment options. For patients-delivered therapy, their adherence to treatment guidelines can greatly impact treatment outcomes. Researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas conducted a study on self-reported adherence in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) across an ethnically diverse group of patients being treated at a publicly-funded hospital. Of the 102 patients (70 RA, 32 SLE) surveyed, 43% were Hispanic, 32% were African-American, and 25% were white. 75% of the patients were female. One-third of patients reported that they never forgot to take their medications, 40% reported choosing to stop taking their medications because of side effects, and 20% discontinued use due to lack of efficacy. While 23% of minority patients reported difficulty taking their medications at the prescribed time each day, only 11% of white patients reported the same problem. No differences were found between RA and SLE patients. Treatment adherence should be considered when developing a treatment plan and prescribing patient-administered therapy in RA and SLE.

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