Medication adherence and its impact on glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with comorbidity: A multicenter cross-sectional study in Northwest Ethiopia

Abstract Background: Medication nonadherence in patients with chronic diseases, particularly in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with comorbidity has continued to be the cause of treatment failure. The current study assessed medication adherence and its impact on glycemic control in T2DM patients with comorbidity. Methods: An institutional-based multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted among T2DM patients with comorbidity at the selected hospitals in Northwest Ethiopia. Medication adherence was measured using a structured questionnaire of the General Medication Adherence Scale (GMAS). A logistic regression model was used to identify predictors of the level of medication adherence and glycemic control. P < 0.05 at 95% confidence interval (CI) was statistically significant. Results: A total of 403 samples were included in the final study. This study showed that more than three-fourths (76.9%) of the participants were under a low level of medication adherence. The source of medication cost coverage [AOR=10.593, 95% CI (2.628–41.835; P = 0.003], monthly income (P < 0.00), self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) practice [AOR=0.266, 95% CI (0.117–0.604); P = 0.002], the number of medications [AOR=0.068, 95% CI (0.004–0.813); P = 0.014] and number of medical conditions [AOR = 0.307, 95% CI (0.026–0.437); P = 0.018] were found to be significant predictors of medication adherence. Significantly, most (74.7%) of the study participants had poor levels of glycemic control. Patients who had a high level of medication adherence [AOR = 0.003, 95% CI (0.000–0.113); P = 0.002] were found less likely to have poor glycemic control compared to patients who were low adherent to their medications. Conclusion: The current study concluded that medication adherence was low and significantly associated with poor glycemic control. Therefore, management intervention and management of T2DM patients with comorbidity should focus on the improvement of medication adherence and other predictor variables.