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Achievement of LDL Cholesterol Goal and Adherence to Statin by Diabetes Patients in Kelantan
Zainab, Mat Yudin; Lili Husniati, Yaacob; Norul Badriah, Hassan; Saiful Bahari, Ismail; Nani, Draman & Siti Suhaila, Mohd Yusoff
Abstract
Background: Statins are a class of potent drugs that can be used to reduce cholesterol,
especially low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). However, their effectiveness is limited
if adherence to treatment is poor. The objectives of the study are to estimate the proportion
of diabetic patient who has achieved LDL-C goal and to determine the association of LDL-C
achievement with socio demographic factors and statin therapy adherence
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study involving 234 patients with type 2 diabetes
mellitus (T2DM) and dyslipidaemia attending an outpatient clinic in a hospital in Kelantan.
Interviews and self-administered questionnaires were used to determine their sociodemographic
and clinical characteristics. Adherence to therapy was assessed using the Medication
Compliance Questionnaire (MCQ). The associations between the achievement of LDL targets
and sociodemographic/clinical factors, including adherence, were analysed with simple logistic
regression.
Results: About 37.6% of patients achieved their LDL-C target. The percentage of patients
who adhered to statin use was 98.3%, and 20.5% of these patients reported full adherence. There
was no significant association between achievement of LDL-C targets with adherence or any other
sociodemographic factors, such as age, gender and educational or economic status (all P-value <
0.05).
Conclusion: Despite a high level of adherence, the majority of patients failed to achieve
LDL-C targets. More concerted efforts are needed to improve this.
Keywords
low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; adherence; statin; diabetes
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