During the past half-century, the medications used to treat cardiovascular disease [CVD] have improved greatly; however, patient adherence to medication recommendations is unsatisfactory, and nearly 50% of patients do not follow prescriptions when taking medications [; ]. This situation limits the ability of maximizing therapeutic effects and results in adverse clinical outcomes and high healthcare costs []. In its 2003 report, the WHO stated that “increasing the effectiveness of adherence interventions may have a far greater impact on the health of the population than any improvement in specific medical treatment” [], and medication adherence has been considered the “next frontier in quality improvement” and an important part of cardiovascular outcomes research []. Therefore, improving medication adherence for CVD constitutes a significant part of clinical research.
Medication Adherence and Barriers to Medication Adherence
The WHO defines adherence as “the extent to which a person’s behavior—taking medication, following a diet, and/or executing lifestyle changes, corresponds with agreed recommendations from a healthcare provider” [], while the European consensus meeting defined adherence to medications as “the process by which patients take their medications as prescribed, composed of initiation, implementation, and discontinuation” []. Generally, medication adherence means taking ≥80% of medication, poor/partial adherence means taking