The influence of health beliefs on the presentation and consultation outcome in patients with chemical sensitivities

Medication nonadherence: health impact, prevalence, correlates and interventions

Nonadherence to medicines is a global problem compromising health and economic outcomes for individuals and society. This article outlines how adherence is defined and measured, and examines the impact, prevalence and determinants of nonadherence. It also discusses how a psychosocial perspective can inform the development of interventions to optimise adherence and presents a series of recommendations for future research to overcome common limitations associated with the medication nonadherence literature. Nonadherence is best understood in terms of the interactions between an individual and a specific disease/treatment, within a social and environmental context. Adherence is a product of motivation and ability. Motivation comprises conscious decision-making processes but also from more 'instinctive', intuitive and habitual processes. Ability comprises the physical and psychological skills needed to adhere. Both motivation and ability are influenced by environmental and social factors which influence the opportunity to adhere as well as triggers or cues to actions which may be internal (e.g. experiencing symptoms) or external (e.g. receiving a reminder). Systematic reviews of adherence interventions show that effective solutions are elusive, partly because few have a strong theoretical basis. Adherence support targeted at the level of individuals will be more effective if it is tailored to address the specific perceptions (e.g. beliefs about illness and treatment) and practicalities (e.g. capability and resources) influencing individuals' motivation and ability to adhere.

Interventions for Adherence Improvement in the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases: Expert Consensus Statement

Over the last 2 decades, the management of chronic disease in Korea has been improved, but it has gradually stagnated. In order to improve care and reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, it is crucial to improve primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases. In recent international guidelines for hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, obesity, and other conditions, adherence issues have become more frequently addressed. However, in terms of implementation in practice, separate approaches by dozens of related academic specialties need to be integrated into a systematic approach including clinician’s perspectives such as the science behind adherence, clinical skills, and interaction within team approach.

In primary prevention for cardiovascular diseases, there are significant barriers to adherence including freedom from symptoms, long latency for therapeutic benefits, life-long duration of treatment, and need for combined lifestyle changes. However, to implement more systematic approaches, the focus on adherence improvement needs to be shifted away from patient factors to the effects of the treatment team and healthcare system. In addition to conventional educational approaches, more patient-oriented approaches such as patient-centered clinical communication skills, counseling using motivational strategies, decision-making by patient empowerment, and a multi-disciplinary team approach should be developed and implemented. Patients should be involved in a program of self-monitoring, self-management, and active counseling. Because most effective interventions on adherence improvement demand greater resources, the health care system and educational or training system of physicians and healthcare staff need to be supported for systematic improvement.

Supporting Adherence to Medicines for Long-Term Conditions

Abstract. Pharmaceutical prescriptions are core to the treatment of most chronic illnesses, yet only half are taken as prescribed. Despite the high costs of nonadherence to individuals and society, effective adherence-promoting interventions are elusive. This is partly due to the sheer complicity of the issue. There are numerous determinants of adherence, both internal to the patient (intrinsic) and external (extrinsic, e.g., environmental or health system-related factors). Also, the relative importance of these determinants varies between individuals and even within the same individual over time and across treatments, presenting a challenge for intervention design. One complication is that interventions can target several levels: (1) patient (e.g., enhancing motivation and/or ability to adhere), (2) patient-provider interactions (e.g., improving communication and the prescribing process), and (3) the healthcare system (e.g., providing the opportunity to access medication through regulatory approval and co-payment schemes). Here, we focus on level 1: the patient. Although environmental factors are important, the effect of an intervention designed to change them will depend on how they impact on the individual. We describe the Perceptions and Practicalities Approach (PAPA), a pragmatic framework positing that adherence/nonadherence is essentially a produce of individual motivation and ability. Adherence interventions, targeted at any level, will therefore be more effective if tailored to address the perceptions and practicalities underpinning individual motivation and ability. We discuss how PAPA can be operationalized, including the application of theoretical models of illness and treatment representation (Necessity-Concerns Framework and Leventhal’s Common-Sense Model) to address salient adherence-related perceptions.

Perceived sensitivity to medicines, alcohol interactive toxicity beliefs, and medication adherence among people living with HIV who drink alcohol

Erroneous beliefs that it is toxic to drink alcohol while taking antiretroviral therapies (ART) used for treating HIV infection, known as alcohol interactive toxicity beliefs, may at least in part account for ART nonadherence among alcohol drinkers. This study was conducted to test a conceptual framework to explain the effects of interactive toxicity beliefs on ART adherence. Computerized surveys were administered to 124 participants receiving HIV care in the southeastern US. Serial mediation model with perceived sensitivity to medicines predicting HIV viral load through three mediating variables: alcohol-ART interactive toxicity beliefs, alcohol-ART avoidance behaviors, and ART adherence. HIV viral load extracted from medical records. Perceived sensitivity to medicines predicted HIV viral load; greater perceptions of medication sensitivity predicted lower HIV viral loads. In addition, there was a significant indirect effect of the serial chain of interactive toxicity beliefs → avoidance behaviors → ART adherence, indicating partial mediation of the relationship between perceived sensitivity to medicines and higher HIV viral load. Perceived sensitivity to medicines provides a conceptual basis for the effects of alcohol-medication interactive toxicity beliefs on ART adherence. Interactive toxicity beliefs are modifiable and can be altered to prevent intentional ART nonadherence.

Rates and predictors of adherence to psychotropic medications in children with autism spectrum disorders

Medication adherence in children is poor, particularly among those with chronic or mental health disorders. However, adherence has not been fully assessed in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The validated proportion of days covered method was used to quantify adherence to psychotropic medication in Medicaid-eligible children who met diagnostic criteria for ASD between 2000 and 2008 (N = 628). Among children prescribed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications, antidepressants, or antipsychotics, 44, 40 and 52 % were adherent respectively. Aggressive behaviors and abnormalities in eating, drinking, and/or sleeping, co-occurring ADHD, and the Medication Regimen Complexity Index were the most significant predictors of adherence rather than demographics or core deficits of ASD. Identifying barriers to adherence in ASD may ultimately lead to improved treatment outcomes.

The feasibility of aromatherapy massage to reduce symptoms of Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance: a pilot study

OBJECTIVES

Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance (IEI) is an acquired disorder with multiple recurrent symptoms, which is associated with diverse environmental factors that are tolerated by the majority of people. IEI is an illness of uncertain aetiology, making it difficult to treat using conventional medicine. Therefore, there is a need for novel therapies to control the symptoms of IEI. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and impact of aromatherapy massage for individuals with IEI.

DESIGN

Non-blinded crossover trial.

SETTING

IEI patients who attended a clinic in Sapporo city were recruited, and sixteen patients were enrolled. Participants were clinically examined by an experienced medical doctor and met the criteria included in the working definition of IEI disorder.

INTERVENTIONS

During the active period, participants received four one-hour aromatherapy massage sessions every two weeks. During the control period, the participants did not receive any massages.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS

Scores on the IEI-scales trigger checklist, symptoms, life impact, and the State Anxiety Inventory were assessed before and after each period. Short-term mood enhancement was evaluated using the Profiles of Mood Status (POMS) before and after sessions.

RESULTS

Due to period effects, evaluation of the results had to be restricted to the first period, and the result showed no effect of intervention. All six sub-scales of the POMS improved after each session (mean score differences: 4.89-1.33, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Aromatherapy was well tolerated by subjects with IEI; however, aromatherapy, as applied in this study, did not suggest any specific effects on IEI condition.

Causal illness attributions in somatoform disorders: associations with comorbidity and illness behavior

OBJECTIVE

To compare causal illness beliefs between patients with unexplained physical symptoms and different comorbid disorders and to assess the association of causal illness beliefs with illness behavior.

METHODS

We examined a sample of 233 patients attending treatment in primary care. Inclusion criteria were "unexplained physical symptoms." All patients were investigated using structured interviews and self-rating scales [Screening for Somatoform Symptoms (SOMS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck Anxiety Inventory, and a 12-item instrument to assess causal attributions]. By means of factor analysis, the following illness attributions were considered: vulnerability to infection and environmental factors, psychological factors, organic causes including genetic and aging factors, and distress (including exhaustion and time pressure).

RESULTS

Most patients reported multiple illness attributions. The more somatoform symptoms patients had, the more explanations in general they considered. Especially for vulnerability and organic illness beliefs, patients with somatoform symptoms had increased scores. Comorbidity with depression and with anxiety disorders was associated with more psychological attributions. Even when the influence of somatization, depression, and anxiety is controlled for, illness beliefs still showed associations with illness behavior. Organic causal beliefs and vulnerability attributions were associated with a need for medical diagnostic examinations, increased expression of symptoms, increased illness consequences, and bodily scanning.

CONCLUSIONS

Multiple causal attributions can coexist demonstrating different associations with comorbid depression and illness behavior.

Multiple chemical sensitivity and idiopathic environmental intolerance (part two)

Multiple chemical sensitivity/idiopathic environmental intolerance (MCS/IEI) is a commonly used diagnostic term for a group of symptoms without apparent organic basis. The symptoms are characteristic of dysfunction in multiple organ systems. They wax and wane fluctuate according to exposure to low levels of chemical agents in the patient's environment, and sometimes begin after a distinct environmental change or injury such an industrial accident or chemical introduced after remodeling. Although traditional medical organizations have not agreed on a definition for this syndrome, it is being increasingly recognized and makes up an increasing percentage of the caseload at occupational/environmental medical clinics.Part two of this review article discusses diagnosis, clinical examination, long-term follow up of MCS/IEI, and the role of physicians, research on odor and treatment, diseases with similar symptoms, and further research regarding MCS/IEI patients.