Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34475141›Full record

SynthesisBMJ open2021

Prevalence and predictors of medication non-adherence among people living with multimorbidity: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Louise Foley, James Larkin, Richard Lombard-Vance, Andrew W Murphy, Lisa Hynes, Emer Galvin, Gerard J Molloy

Erratum issuedAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMJ open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 111 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
111citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

111 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  13. Multimorbidity and cardiovascular prevention in primary care: a cohort study in New Zealand.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026
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  17. Enhancing medication adherence with blister-packed oral oncolytics: A case example in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.Journal of oncology pharmacy practice : official publication of the International Society of Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners · 2026
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51 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Louise FoleySchool of Psychology, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland l.foley14@nuigalway.ie.ORCID 0000-0002-0773-3712
James LarkinHRB Centre for Primary Care Research, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Richard Lombard-VanceDepartment of Psychology, National University of Ireland Maynooth, Maynooth, Ireland.
Andrew W MurphyDiscipline of General Practice, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland.
Lisa HynesHealth Programmes, Croí Heart & Stroke Centre, Galway, Ireland.
Emer GalvinSchool of Pharmacy & Biomolecular Sciences, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland.
Gerard J MolloySchool of Psychology, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThis systematic review aimed to describe medication non-adherence among people living with multimorbidity according to the current literature, and synthesise predictors of non-adherence in this population.

methodsA systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses. PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO were searched for relevant articles published in English language between January 2009 and April 2019. Quantitative studies reporting medication non-adherence and/or predictors of non-adherence among people with two or more chronic conditions were included in the review. A meta-analysis was conducted with a subgroup of studies that used an inclusive definition of multimorbidity to recruit participants, rather than seeking people with specific conditions. Remaining studies reporting prevalence and predictors of non-adherence were narratively synthesised.

resultsThe database search produced 10 998 records and a further 75 were identified through other sources. Following full-text screening, 178 studies were included in the review. The range of reported non-adherence differed by measurement method, at 76.5% for self-report, 69.4% for pharmacy data, and 44.1% for electronic monitoring. A meta-analysis was conducted with eight studies (

conclusionsThe review identified a heterogeneous literature in terms of conditions studied, and definitions and measures of non-adherence used. Results suggest that future attempts to improve adherence among people with multimorbidity should determine for which conditions individuals require most support. The variable levels of medication non-adherence highlight the need for more attention to be paid by healthcare providers to the impact of multimorbidity on chronic disease self-management. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019133849.

Indexed as

MultimorbidityText MessagingChronic DiseaseHumansMedication AdherencePrevalenceepidemiologymental healthprimary care

Identifiers

PMID34475141
PMCPMC8413882

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.