[Factors related to glaucoma treatment compliance: patients' opinions from a University Hospital].
OBJECTIVE
Considering that noncompliance to glaucoma treatment is one of the risk factors associated with disease s progression, the purpose of the present study was to evaluate: 1) knowledge and feelings about the disease; 2) self-reported noncompliance to treatment and related factors; and 3) influence of disease in lifestyle.


METHODS
Interviews, with application of a semi-structured questionnaire, of 50 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma. The analysis was performed using Lefèvre's technique (Collective Subject Speech--CSS, qualitative/quantitative research).


RESULTS
Thirty-eight percent of patients did not consider themselves well informed about glaucoma. The percentage of patients that reported noncompliance was 20%. The main causes of noncompliance are: side effects of antiglaucomatous drugs (24%); lack of information about the disease (22%); difficulty in understanding information and communication problems with the physician (14%); difficulties in administering the eye drops (14%); poverty, with impossibility to pay for the eye drops (10%); patients attitudes and beliefs (10%). Eighteen percent of the participants informed that the disease affected their life quality.


CONCLUSIONS
In the studied population, most of the problems related to noncompliance to glaucoma treatment pointed out different factors that may decrease with education about POAG, interventions on attitudes and behavior, improvement of doctor-patient relationship and anti-glaucoma drugs supply.
Silva
Lucas Ravagnani
LR
Curso de Graduação em Medicina, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.
de Paula
Jayter Silva
JS
Rocha
Eduardo Melani
EM
Rodrigues
Maria de Lourdes Veronese
Mde L
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005902:Glaucoma, Open-Angle / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires