title: Medication adherence in asthma patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although current asthma guidelines stress the importance of assessing and enhancing adherence to asthma treatment, medication adherence rates in asthma patients are consistently low in practice. In this review, we summarize current literature on method of measurement, prevalence, outcome and intervention of medication adherence in asthma patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Nonadherence to prescribed treatment continues to be a frequent problem in patients with asthma even in recent years. Objective measurement of adherence should be implemented whenever possible. Review of pharmacy refill data or electronic monitoring of inhaler actuation may be a preferred method to assess adherence. Educational programmes should be specifically designed to address the unmet need and specific reasons for nonadherence for the target population. Large, well designed clinical trials to assess the efficacy of remote electronic monitoring and reminder systems to improve adherence are needed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is an urgent clinical need for systematic, proven methods to assess and address medication nonadherence in asthma patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri 63110, USA. ksumino@dom.wustl.edu
authors.forename: Kaharu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sumino
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Cabana
mesh_terms: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D055118:Medication Adherence; D018670:Monitoring, Ambulatory; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents