Medicus, Vol. 30 No. 2 Astma i KOPB, 2021.
Review article
Compliance with Inhalation Therapy in the Digital Age
Žarko Vrbica
Abstract
In terms of daily usage, compliance with inhalation therapy is between 10% and 70%. Unintentional non-compliance refers to patients who have not decided to reduce or discontinue therapy, but there is still irregularity or inadequacy of the recommended drug. One form of unintentional non-compliance is more difficult to detect: unconscious unintentional non-compliance, essential for inhalation therapy. It is often the reason for inadequate therapeutic success and deterioration of control of the disorder, or even calls for emergency interventions and hospital treatment, all because of improper inhaler use. This type of non-compliance is found in up to 40% of patients and is more difficult to detect because the patient believes he is taking the medication regularly. Current guidelines insist on regular routine checks of inhalation technique and finding the most adequate type of inhaler per patient, as well as checking the usage method. Over time, inhalation techniques can fall back, so patients who use the same inhaler and same medicine for a prolonged period of time may start to err and end up taking it improperly. Quick access to information on the web or via mobile apps enables ease of use for patient education. Such a model has proven to be user-friendly for the patient, allowing for additional education in the patient’s own home environment, at whatever time they choose, and reduces the risk of exacerbation. Sensors monitoring airflow upon inhaler activation have been developed, which also act to analyze sound phenomena during inhalation to determine the quality of the breath. Such apparatuses can wirelessly transfer data on the quality of inhalation to the patient’s mobile phone, thus enabling real-time dispatch of information on the correctness of therapy usage, and as a consequence, rectify time intervals and dosage method.
Keywords
patient education; inhalation therapy; inhaler; mobile applications; unintentional non-compliance; checking inhalation techniques; compliance
Hrčak ID:
264159
URI
Publication date:
18.10.2021.
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