Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: The non-compliance to treatment is defined as the lack of adequacy between patients’ behaviors in taking medication, following a diet, and/or executing lifestyle changes, and medical prescriptions. It is a major cause of therapeutic failure that puts into question the real efficiency of medical care. The objective of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic compliance degree in diabetic patients and to determine the different factors and issues complicating compliance to treatment.

Materials and methods: It is a descriptive and prospective study conducted in the Endocrinology-Diabetology Department of Oujda’s University Hospital Center, including 60 patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus, who have been evaluated on their therapeutic compliance, using the Morisky scale. The analysis was performed by SPSS 20 software.

Results and discussion: The mean age was 41 years with a female predominance. 43% of patients were on oral hypoglycemic agents and 57% were on injectable treatment. Non-compliance was found in 59% of the patients. They were older (mean age was 65 years vs. 31 years in observing patients [OP] P=0.04), more unstable (mean HbA1c was at 8.9% vs. 7.4% in OPs) with a lower socio-cultural level (P=0.06). The other non-compliance factors were numerous: the lack of education (56%), the occurrence of undesirable effects (36%), the non-availability of treatment at health centers (22%), 20% of cases due to work constraints, and 20% owing to illness and depression denial.

Conclusion: Non-compliance to therapy is common within diabetic patients and is often related to age, disease denial, and low socioeconomic status. Personalized education can be a factor in improving adherence to medication.