Medication adherence in patients with HIV infection: a comparison of two measurement methods.

Two measurements of adherence, patient self-report and electronic measurement by the Medication Event Monitoring System (MEMS), were compared in a 3-month adherence study of 44 HIV-infected patients who had been placed on regimens that included protease inhibitors (PIs). The dose percentage and degree of clinically significant dosing time fluctuation were calculated monthly. The mean dose percentage by self-report versus MEMS was 97.

Pharmaceutical services in an HIV clinic.

Pharmaceutical-related interventions in a pharmacist-directed human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) clinic were characterized. Intervention types, clinical significance, and expected outcomes were adapted from the literature. Pharmacists' interventions were recorded on a spreadsheet, and two pharmacists came into agreement to ensure the consistency of categorization.

Treatment of hyperlipidemia in HIV-infected patients.

The treatment of hyperlipidemia in patients infected with HIV is discussed. Hyperlipidemia is common in HIV-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy, especially protease inhibitors and stavudine. The recommendations of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) may not entirely apply to HIV-infected patients.

Diabetes mellitus associated with recombinant human growth hormone for HIV wasting syndrome.

Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) is an important treatment option for patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wasting syndrome. Side effects of rhGH are minimal when administered at physiologic and moderately high dosages, as seen in growth hormone deficiency and Turner's syndrome, respectively. The dosage of rhGH is significantly higher to treat wasting syndrome and still is being studied to determine its long-term efficacy and safety.

Stages of change for adherence with medication regimens for chronic disease: development and validation of a measure.

Background: The stages-of-change (SOC) model has been used to explain and predict how behavior change occurs, but it is new as an approach to understanding why patients fail to take their medications as prescribed.

Objective: This study validated a 2-item measure of SOC for adherence with medication regimens in 2 groups of patients prescribed pharmacologic therapy for chronic conditions.

Methods: Two cross-sectional studies of attitudes toward medication adherence included the same measure of SOC for medication adherence.