To reduce the risk of hospital readmission after a heart attack, patients must take their medication 80 percent of the time, according to research from CVS and Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital published in the American Heart Journal.
While the 80 percent mark has long been suspected to be a significant threshold, it had not been experimentally confirmed until this study, according to a news release.
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Researchers tracked adherence and clinical outcomes for more than 4,100 heart attack patients who had filled prescriptions for beta-blockers, statins, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensis receptor blockers after discharge. Data was taken from a trial conducted by Aetna and Brigham and Women's from a 2011 study in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Patients with at least 80 percent adherence were 24 percent more likely avoid hospital readmission for a "major vascular event." Patients with adherence between 60 and 79 percent did not have reduced chances for hospital readmission when compared with a nonadherent control group.
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