Inpharma 1300 - 11 Aug 2001

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Telephone/postal reminders do not improve pravastatin compliance ‘Telephone and postal reminders do not improve compliance with pravastatin therapy or with recommended coronary risk-reducing behaviors’, says a researcher from the US. This is the principal finding of his study of 4548 primary-care patients (mean age 58 years) at increased risk* of experiencing a first myocardial infarction who were treated with pravastatin [‘Pravachol’].** Patients were randomised to an intervention comprising telephone reminders at weeks 2 and 8 and a postal reminder at week 4 (about regimen compliance and coronary risk-reducing lifestyle modifications), or to usual care. After 6 months, 79.7% of patients in the intervention group and 77.4% of those receiving usual care reported that they were ‘taking pravastatin as prescribed’. The researcher adds that there were no between-group differences in patient-reported risk-reducing lifestyle modifications. * Participants scored ≥ 4 on the First Heart Attack Risk Test. ** The study was funded by Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., US. Guthrie RM. The effects of postal and telephone reminders on compliance with pravastatin therapy in a National Registry: results of the First Myocardial Infarction Risk Reduction Program. Clinical Therapeutics 23: 970-980, Jun 800861830 2001

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Inpharma 11 Aug 2001 No. 1300