title: Factors affecting compliance and persistence with treatment for hepatic encephalopathy.
abstract: Noncompliance with treatment protocols produces an increased burden on the health care system. Reports show that 23% of annual admissions to nursing homes in the United States (380,000 patients) are due to noncompliance, resulting in overall costs of over $31 billion. More than 10% of all patients (3.5 million) are hospitalized each year due to complications related to noncompliance, with over $15 billion spent. In addition, nearly half of the 2 billion prescriptions filled each year are not taken correctly. Patients with cirrhosis and hepatic encephalopathy who are prescribed lactulose experience a greater frequency of adverse effects, require more hospitalizations, and suffer more disease recurrence than those prescribed rifaximin.
authors.affiliation: Digestive Disease Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0595, USA. neffgw@ucmail.uc.edu
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Neff
mesh_terms: D016527:Drug Costs; D006501:Hepatic Encephalopathy / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D007792:Lactulose / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000191:economics; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012294:Rifamycins / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000078262:Rifaximin
chemical_list: D012294:Rifamycins; D007792:Lactulose; D000078262:Rifaximin