ANN ARBOR, Mich., March 10 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers said Wednesday the biggest reason heart patients fail to take drugs that could save their lives is they forget.
The researchers, from the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center, said that was the top answer among patients they surveyed to see how well they were sticking to their heart medication regimen.
The study involved 154 patients who had suffered acute coronary syndromes, such as heart attack or unstable angina, and were hospitalized. The majority were taking some or all of the four major classes of drugs for heart patients: anti-platelet medications such as aspirin, ACE inhibitors, beta blockers and lipid-lowering, cholesterol-fighting statin drugs.
The researchers contacted the patients six months after they left the hospital and asked them about adherence to their medications. They also asked about their household size and education levels.
Half of the patients reported problems in adhering to their potentially life-saving drug treatments and, researchers said, these patients were better educated on the whole than the national average.
