Evidence mapPaperPMID 18288541Full record

ArticleJournal of general internal medicine2008

Impact of fixed-dose combination drugs on adherence to prescription medications.

Feng Pan, Michael E Chernew, A Mark Fendrick

Registry-linked trialOpen access · bronzeAbstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT01321255 (Improving Equitable Acces and Adherence to Secondary Prevention Therapy With a Fixed-Dose Combination Drug), which is not on this map. Cited by 57 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
57citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
5.1field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT01321255 phase3completedstarted 2012, after this paper: background citation

Improving Equitable Acces and Adherence to Secondary Prevention Therapy With a Fixed-Dose Combination Drug

Ran2012Enrolled2,118Registered outcomes6Posted comparisons0ConditionsMyocardial InfarctionArmsFDC, Separately drugs, simvastatin, aspirin and ramipril
Open the trial in the graph
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

57 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 155 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Medication adherence with fixed-doseFrontiers in pharmacology · 2023
    Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Trial
  5. Article
  6. Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy as a Strategy to Improve Antidiabetic Medication Adherence in People with Type 2 Diabetes: A Narrative Review.Diabetes therapy : research, treatment and education of diabetes and related disorders · 2026
    Review
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. An Expert Opinion on the Role of the Rosuvastatin/Amlodipine Single Pill Fixed Dose Combination in Cardiovascular Prevention.High blood pressure & cardiovascular prevention : the official journal of the Italian Society of Hypertension · 2023
    Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Single-Pill Combination to Improve Hypertension Treatment: Pharmaceutical Industry Development.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022
    Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Observational
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Feng PanDepartment of Health Management and Policy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Michael E Chernew
A Mark Fendrick
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor · USHarvard University · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe inverse correlation between the complexity of a drug regimen and medication adherence is well established. Fixed-dose combination (FDC) therapies are hypothesized to enhance compliance by decreasing the number of required pills.

objectiveThe objective of the study is to compare adherence of a FDC [Glucovance, a FDC of metformin and glyburide] to a 2-pill regimen.

designLongitudinal data from a large claims database were used to assess adherence from January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2001. Propensity scoring methods were used to mitigate concerns related to non-random assignment of patients to treatments. SUBJECTS: The subjects of the study were individuals prescribed metformin or sulfonylurea or both before July 2000, who were prescribed both metformin and sulfonylurea concurrently (either separately or FDC) after August 2000. MEASUREMENTS: Adherence was measured by medication possession ratio; the proportion of days on which a patient had medication available.

resultsThe FDC enhanced adherence rates by approximately 13% when compared to a 2-pill regimen.

conclusionsCompared to 2-pill therapy, a FDC resulted in important increases in patient adherence. Economic analyses are warranted to determine whether the clinical benefits attributable to the adherence gains are worth the incremental cost of a FDC.

Indexed as

Patient ComplianceAdolescentAdultAgedDiabetes MellitusDrug Administration ScheduleDrug CombinationsDrug Therapy, CombinationFemaleFollow-Up StudiesGlyburideHumansHypoglycemic AgentsMaleMetforminMiddle AgedDrug CombinationsGlucovanceGlyburideHypoglycemic AgentsMetformin

Identifiers

PMID18288541
PMCPMC2324153
OpenAlexW2070153213

What Socratic holds

Texttitle and abstract
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.