A Review of Patient Related Barriers to Statin Adherence

Objective: The effectiveness of statin therapy in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular (CV) disease as well as the reduction in CV related mortality is well-documented. However, with suboptimal adherence, the benefits of these medications cannot be fully realized. The purpose of this review was to summarize current literature that examines factors and barriers associated with statin adherence. These factors are important to consider when designing interventions to enhance adherence to statins. Methods: A PUBMED search was conducted using the terms “statins” and “adherence”, which generated 1,408 results. The most relevant studies which were found to exhaustively provide all the patient factors reported to affect adherence are summarized in this review. Results: Patient factors which affected adherence included socio-demographic characteristics, factors relating to patient perceptions, adverse events of the medication or other disease conditions the patients suffered from. While some of the factors that were associated with better or worse adherence were patient characteristics which cannot be addressed, there are several prevalent reasons for non-adherence which can be targeted with interventions. Conclusion: The extensive literature regarding factors positively or negatively influencing statin adherence reflects great research efforts. Interventions to address the identified barriers can help improve patient adherence and subsequent health outcomes.