Adherence to treatment in allergic rhinitis using mobile technology. The MASK Study
Journal
Clinical and Experimental Allergy
Date Issued
April 2019
Author(s)
Nogueira-Silva, L.
Odzhakova, C.
Park, Hae Sim
Passalacqua, Giovanni G.
Pedersen, Soøren Erik
Farsi, A.
Pigearias, Bernard
Pin, Isabelle
Pohl, Wolfgang
Portejoie, Fabienne
Puy, Robert
Burte, Emilie
Bocheńska-Marciniak, Małgorzata
Ródenas Rigla, Francisco
Rolla, G.
Sooronbaev, Talantbek M.
Urrutia-Pereira, M.
Bewick, Michael
Vontetsianos, Theodore
Werfel, T.
Camuzat, Thierry
García-Cobas, C.Y.
Zhanat, I.
Bogus-Buczynska, Izabela
Fontaine, Jean-François
Bindslev-Jensen, Carsten
Blain, Hubert
Cortés-Grimaldo, R.M.
Abstract
Background: Mobile technology may help to better understand the adherence to treatment. MASK-rhinitis (Mobile Airways Sentinel NetworK for allergic rhinitis) is a patient-centred ICT system. A mobile phone app (the Allergy Diary) central to MASK is available in 22 countries. Objectives: To assess the adherence to treatment in allergic rhinitis patients using the Allergy Diary App. Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was carried out on all users who filled in the Allergy Diary from 1 January 2016 to 1 August 2017. Secondary adherence was assessed by using the modified Medication Possession Ratio (MPR) and the Proportion of days covered (PDC) approach. Results: A total of 12 143 users were registered. A total of 6 949 users reported at least one VAS data recording. Among them, 1 887 users reported ≥7 VAS data. About 1 195 subjects were included in the analysis of adherence. One hundred and thirty-six (11.28%) users were adherent (MPR ≥70% and PDC ≤1.25), 51 (4.23%) were partly adherent (MPR ≥70% and PDC = 1.50) and 176 (14.60%) were switchers. On the other hand, 832 (69.05%) users were non-adherent to medications (MPR <70%). Of those, the largest group was non-adherent to medications and the time interval was increased in 442 (36.68%) users. Conclusion and clinical relevance: Adherence to treatment is low. The relative efficacy of continuous vs on-demand treatment for allergic rhinitis symptoms is still a matter of debate. This study shows an approach for measuring retrospective adherence based on a mobile app. This also represents a novel approach for analysing medication-taking behaviour in a real-world setting.