• Gbenga Ogedegbe, Antoinette Schoenthaler, and Senaida Fernandez.
• Behavioral Cardiovascular Health & Hypertension Program, Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, New York, NY 10032, USA. goo1@columbia.edu
• J Gen Intern Med. 2007 Aug 1; 22 (8): 117611791176-9.

ObjectiveThe relationship between appointment-keeping behavior, medication adherence (ADH), and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP) was assessed in 153 hypertensive African Americans followed in a community-based practice.MethodsADH was assessed with a self-report questionnaire. BP was obtained from electronic medical records and appointment attendance was determined from the log of all appointments made during the 12-month study period. Nonadherence rates were compared across appointment attendance categories with chi-square. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between ADH and appointment attendance, whereas multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was used to examine the relationship between appointment attendance and BP.ResultsTwenty-five percent of patients (87% women, mean age 52 years) did not miss any appointments, 44% missed 1-30%, and 31% missed greater than 30%. Adjusted nonadherence rates were similar for all 3 categories (70%, 66%, and 65%, respectively, p = 0.88) as were adjusted mean SBP and DBP in the MANCOVA model, [F (4, 218) = 1.13, p = .34]. Logistic regression analysis did not indicate a significant relationship between appointment attendance and ADH.ConclusionsAppointment-keeping behavior was not related to ADH or BP among hypertensive African Americans. It should not be used as a proxy for ADH in this patient population.

16 keywords...

hide…