Compliance to supervised disulfiram therapy: a comparison of voluntary and court-ordered patients.
We hypothesized that court mandate would significantly enhance compliance with supervised disulfiram therapy. We conducted a twelve-week prospective study of outpatient compliance with court-ordered, monitored disulfiram treatment as compared to voluntary, monitored treatment. The court ordered group (n=19) was significantly more compliant than the voluntary group (n=22). Legally mandated subjects attended an average of 87% (+/-21%) of scheduled visits, versus 42% (+/-35%) for the group without court order. Court mandate roughly doubles the compliance rate of monitored disulfiram therapy, effectively enhancing clinic attendance during the first twelve weeks of treatment.
Martin
Brandon
B
Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center (DVAMC), Denver, Colorado, USA.
Clapp
Loraine
L
Bialkowski
Diana
D
Bridgeford
Denise
D
Amponsah
Akwasi
A
Lyons
Levester
L
Beresford
Thomas P
TP
D000427:Alcohol Deterrents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019973:Alcohol-Related Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004221:Disulfiram / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016903:Drug Monitoring / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010045:Outpatients / Q000523:psychology; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016320:Substance Abuse Treatment Centers / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*
D000427:Alcohol Deterrents; D004221:Disulfiram