title: Medication persistence among patients with asthma/COPD drugs.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine medication possession ratio (MPR) of patients with asthma/COPD drugs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Individual patient's volumes of asthma/COPD drugs (ATC-code R03) for 2000-2004 were obtained from a pharmacy record database. For each patient the MPR was calculated as the percentage of the treatment time that the patient had drugs available.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medication possession ratio (MPR).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1,812 patients, 20 years and older, with dispensed asthma/COPD drugs were registered in the database, 928 patients (51%) had acquired drugs less than once per year (68% for 20-29 years old) during the 5-year study. Only 13% of the patients had steroids and steroid combinations available to allow continuous treatment. Eight percent of the patients 20-29 years old had MPR > or = 80% of all the included drugs and 5% when only steroids and steroid combinations were considered. About 25% of the patients had acquired 80% of the total volume of asthma/COPD drugs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The majority of the patients, and particularly those in the youngest age group used asthma/COPD drugs only sporadically. This may indicate undermedication which is likely to have a negative impact on patient outcome.
authors.affiliation: Health Sciences, Luleå Tecnical University, 971 87 Lulea, Sweden.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Haupt
authors.forename: Kristin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Krigsman
authors.forename: J Lars G
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Nilsson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005260:Female; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult; D016903:Drug Monitoring
chemical_list: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents; D005938:Glucocorticoids