Adherence to treatment in patients with Behcet's disease.

AIM: Behcet's disease (BD) is a chronic, inflammatory disease with multisystem involvement. Adherence to treatment is low in chronic diseases as well as inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. This study assessed factors associated with non-adherence to treatment in patients with BD.

METHODS: All the patients with BD who visited in the outpatient clinic of Connective Tissue Diseases Research Center in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences were included in the study. Adherence to treatment was evaluated by the consideration of medication compliance and appointment-keeping behavior. The relationships between adherence rate and six groups of variables were examined. A regression analysis was performed.

RESULTS: A total of 137 patients (84 male and 53 female) were included. Totally, 50.7% of the patients were non-adherent to treatment. Side effects of medications and the high cost of treatment were the most frequent causes of non-adherence. Non-adherence was significantly more common in men, patients with low income, patients who were unaware of the disease complications, employed persons, and in patients who were on treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

CONCLUSIONS: Non-adherence is common in patients with BD. Male sex, low income, low knowledge about the disease, being employed and being on treatment with NSAIDs are the main risk factors for non-adherence.