Non-adherence to Disease-Modifying Treatments in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating disease of the central nervous system. Usually, long-term MS medications are injected intramuscularly or subcutaneously, making them intolerable for many MS patients. Objectives: In the present study, the rate and the causes of non-adherence to MS disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) were assessed in patients with MS. Materials and Methods: Two hundred and three MS patients of Guilan MS Society were interviewed demographic and clinical data of the patients were collected. Results: Among the 203 patients, 73.9% were female. The mean±SD age of the patients was 32.47±9.15. Non-adherence to DMDs was due to side effects (21.7%) and requests of the families (21.7%) or ineffectiveness (17.4%). Significant association was seen between the non-adherence to DMDs and gender (p=0.015) and relapses (p=0.021). Conclusion: The evidence from the present study suggests that there is a high rate of non-adherence to DMDs in MS patients in Guilan.