Evolution of antiretroviral treatment adherence from 2000 to 2008

Objectives

To evaluate antiretroviral treatment adherence in the HIV patient cohort of our hospital and observe their evolution over a 9-year period, and to determine the individual pattern of adherence over time.

Methods

Descriptive study of the evolution of average annual adherence and the annual percentage of adherent patients greater than 95% from 2000 to 2008. We analysed the individual pattern of adherence over time and patients were classified as ‘consistently adherent’, ‘consistently non-adherent’, and ‘fluctuating’.

Results

In the analysis of 577 patients, baseline adherence was significantly greater in naïve patients compared to those who were pre-treated.

Average annual adherence increased slightly and stayed at values around 95%. As with the percentage of patients with adherence greater than 95%, which increased from 64% in 2000 to 79% in 2008.

In terms of the individual pattern of adherence over time, of the 468 patients analysed, the majority (59%) were consistently adherent, 4% non-adherent, and the rest (37%) fluctuated in their adherence.

Conclusions

In our cohort, the overall adherence values remained steady over time and even show a positive trend, which is likely to be the result of systematic monitoring of adherence and implementation strategies to maintain adherence.