Improving inhaler adherence in a clinical trial through the use of the nebulizer chronolog

Chest. 1993 Aug;104(2):501-7. doi: 10.1378/chest.104.2.501.

Abstract

This study examined whether utilizing an electronic medication monitor (Nebulizer Chronolog) to provide participants with detailed feedback on their metered-dose inhaler (ipratropium bromide or placebo) usage patterns would result in closer adherence to the prescribed regimen of two inhalations three times daily compared to a control group not receiving feedback. Adherence was also measured by canister weighing and self-report. Two-hundred fifty-one consecutive special intervention participants from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Johns Hopkins University centers of a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-sponsored clinical trial were enrolled in this ancillary study. Compared to controls, feedback participants at the 4-month follow-up adhered more closely to the prescribed three sets per day (mean 1.95 vs 1.65) and used the prescribed two actuations in a greater percentage of sets (80 percent vs 60.3 percent). These results indicate that electronic monitoring of metered-dose inhaler use with a Nebulizer Chronolog in a clinical trial not only provides a more accurate assessment of adherence to prescribed inhaler use, but also enhances adherence when participants are given feedback of the monitoring results.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Ipratropium / administration & dosage
  • Lung Diseases, Obstructive / drug therapy*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Nebulizers and Vaporizers*
  • Patient Compliance*

Substances

  • Ipratropium