Hypertensive patients' preferences for complementary and alternative medicine and the influence of these preferences on the adherence to prescribed medication

Abstract

Local health care systems should provide patients with alternative health services that suit their requests.

Complementary and alternative medicine use among hypertensive patients receiving biomedical treatment: a cross-sectional survey at the LEKMA General Hospital in Accra, Ghana.

“…This calls for efforts to get more hypertensive patients on the health insurance scheme to lessen their burden of buying [7]. Our findings revealed a significant association between CAM use and the experience of antihypertensive medication side effects, confirming the finding reported by Lee et al, 2014, that majority of their respondents had negative perceptions of western medicine due to its side effects, hence adjusting their prescribed antihypertensive drugs with CAM [27].…”

Patient pathways for cardiovascular diseases in Malaysia and the Philippines: a systematic review

“…One, using mixed methods, including interviews with health workers and patients, concluded that use of TCAM, either to supplement or replace WM, was common 13 . This view was supported in two further studies, one comprising in-depth interviews with 10 patients in a university clinic 38 and another in a community clinic 28 . In both, many patients rejected WM, at least initially, reducing their prescribed dosage of western drugs and taking TCAM instead or in addition to the western ones, and/or taking medication (both TCAM and WM) only when symptoms were evident.…”

“…Qualitative studies in Malaysia 27,35,38 reported patients who declined treatment, which the authors attributed to being in denial of or being confused about treatment, although some overcame denial when faced with adverse health implications. Studies in both countries reported patient concerns about the cost of lifelong treatment 24,29,37 and side effects 13,22,28,31,37 . In particular, some were concerned that they might become dependent on medication, or suspected that prolonged use of medication might harm them, concerns often perpetuated by family members and friends of patients 22 .…”

“…Common themes in many of the papers include frequent discontinuation or changes in treatment 13,24,34 , self-management 24,28,38 , combined use of western medicine (WM) and traditional and complementary medicine (TCAM) 13,28,31,37,38 , and uneven adherence by health professionals to treatment guidelines 35 . Adherence to medication was variable but often poor, although it is not meaningful to calculate summary measures as the samples differed regarding inclusion criteria and measurement of adherence.…”

“…Only 13% saw the same doctor each time. A cluster of qualitative studies 24,28,38 on choices for treating HT reported widespread patient self-management, in terms of drug types and dosages.…”