Persistence in the Methadone Maintenance Program and Its Relationship with the Medication Regimen Complexity Index in Opioid-Dependent Patients

TL;DR

This study examines how medication complexity affects persistence in a methadone program for opioid-dependent patients.

Contribution

The study introduces a new definition of methadone maintenance program persistence and identifies key predictors.

Findings

Age, comorbidities, and methadone doses predict methadone maintenance program persistence.

The Medication Regimen Complexity Index does not reliably predict persistence in opioid-dependent patients.

Abstract

It has been shown that the Medication Regimen Complexity Index (MRCI) is a useful and reliable tool for calculating the complexity of the pharmacotherapeutic regimen (CPR). Furthermore, a high MRCI is associated with lower adherence. However, the MRCI of opioid-dependent patients (ODP) has not been studied. The aim of this study is to calculate the Methadone Maintenance Program (MMP) persistence and the MRCI score in a ODP cohort. Second, to analyze its relationship and association with other variables. To accomplish this research, an observational study including adults with a confirmed diagnosis of opiate-dependency according to the DSM-5 in a MMP center was carried out. To define MMP-persistence, a group was created by the researchers who defined five weighted items according to their agreed importance. Our first contribution was to create a new definition of MMP-persistence. This study also identified age, comorbidities, and received methadone maintenance doses as successful predictors for MMP-persistence. We have also shown that the MRCI does not seem to be a useful tool to determine MMP-persistence, probably because there are multiple factors that influence it in addition to the CPR. It is necessary to continue searching for more precise selection and stratification tools for ODP to improve their persistence.