Evaluation of Prescription Pattern of Drugs and Drug Awareness and Adherence to Treatment in Post Myocardial Infarction Patients

Abstract Aims and Objectives: This study addresses the lack of research on prescription patterns and patient drug awareness in secondary prevention of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (MI) and non-ST-elevation MI in India. It evaluates drug prescriptions, patient awareness, perceived adherence, cardiologists’ guideline adherence, and treatment outcomes. Materials and Methods: After approval from the ethics committee, a cross-sectional, observational study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital’s Cardiology Outpatient Department over 18 months, involving 182 patients. Prescriptions were assessed for completeness, adherence to the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guidelines, and treatment outcomes. Patient awareness and perceived adherence were evaluated using validated questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and correlation tests (GraphPad InStat v3.06), with statistical significance set at P < 0.05. Results: Among 182 prescriptions, 46.7% of prescriptions were complete, the average number of drugs per prescription was 7, and 31.56% of drugs were prescribed by generic name. The most prescribed drug class was the antiplatelet group, with atorvastatin being the most common drug. The overall drug awareness questionnaire score was 5.36 ± 1.93, and overall perceived drug adherence was 4.21 ± 0.79. Complete adherence by cardiologists to ESC guidelines was present in 39.01% of prescriptions, and outcomes were seen in 8 (4.4%) patients. Conclusion: The most prescribed drug class was the antiplatelet group, with atorvastatin being the most common drug. Despite below-average awareness, most patients adhered to treatment, and a majority of cardiologists followed ESC guidelines.