In order to determine whether the Morisky 8-item medication adherence (MMAS-8) is a useful instrument in elderly hypertensive patients attending a primary care center, we conducted a field study with a quantitative approach of evaluation of diagnostic tests in elderly hypertensive patients from the Cardiovascular Health Program Health in Cabrero, Chile. The results of the scale were compared with the blood pressure and the pill-count method. The diagnostic evaluation of the scale using the reference methods of blood pressure and pill count resulted: Sensitivity: 86%, 85%; specificity: 56%, 58%; positive predictive value: 60%, 65%; negative predictive value: 84%. 81%. In conclusion, the scale allows to detect in a simple way, and at a low cost, to people who are not adherent to their regimen of drug treatment.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.