Author (year)
Period of data collection
Medication adherence rate (I:C)
Adherence measure
Data collection methods
Sirey et al. (2017)19 3 years The 5-fold increase in adherence during the first 6 weeks of care BMQ Self-Report
Alekhya et al. (2015)21 6 months 30.1% DAI Self-Report
Abegaz et al. (2017)22 4 months 10.6% MMAS (8-items) Self-Report
Al-Jumah et al. (2014)23 5 months 47.1% MMAS (8-items) Self-Report
Yau et al. (2014)25 1 year 54% The prescription record and also the electronic and written medical records (filled prescriptions for any antidepressants with no gaps of >15 days within 6 months after initiation of treatment) Claims Database
Mert et al. (2015)34 1 year 69.2% Not taking any medicine for at least 1 week during the 6-month term before the study was regarded as medication nonadherence; from first-degree relatives and patient files. Self-Report and patient record
Al-Jumah et al. (2014)46 5 months 47.1% MMAS (8-items) Self-Report
Aljumah and Hassali (2015)47 6 months NM MMAS (8-items) Self-Report
Baeza-Velasco et al. (2019)48 NM 29.7% MARS Self-Report
Bhat et al. (2018)49 5 months 81% Unstructured scale contains one question Self-Report
Burnett-Zeigler et al. (2014)50 4 months NM BMQ Self-Report
Chatterjee et al. (2017)51 NM NM MMAS (8-items) Self-Report
De las Cuevas et al. (2014)52 8 months 53.8% MGLS (4-items) Self-Report
De Las Cuevas et al. (2014)53 4 months 49.6% MGLS (4-items) Self-Report
Isa et al. (2018)54 2 months NM Attitude to Medication Adherence Questionnaire Self-Report
Klein et al. (2017)55 NM 51.9% MGLS (4-items) Self-Report
Lu et al. (2016)56 9 months 37.8% MGLS (4-items) Self-Report
Lucca et al. (2015)57 1 year 58.2% MARS Self-Report
Novick et al. (2015)58
7 months
Patient-reported: 42.5%; clinician-reported: 85.4% -Clinicians were asked to provide their opinion on whether the patient had been adherent with the prescribed medication(s) for MDD since the baseline visit. -Patients were asked how regularly they took the medications prescribed for MDD since the baseline visit.
Self-Report
Serrano et al. (2014)59 6 months 72.4% SMAQ Self-Report
Shrestha Manandhar et al. (2017)60 4 months 37% Structured questionnaire Self-Report
Taleban et al. (2016)61 NM NM MARS Self-Report
Vannachavee et al. (2016)62 3 months I: 41.17±2.87; C: 22.58±17.07 SMIR Self-Report
Bushnell et al. (2016)63 6 months 45% Non-persistent if treatment had been stopped before 180 days after the index antidepressant’s dispensing date Medical and pharmaceutical Claims Database
Green et al. (2017)64 NM 54% Medical Record Claims Database
Grover et al. (2018)65
1 year
3 months (34.3%) 3‑6 months (25%) 6‑12 months (10%)
Medical record
Claims Database
Holvast et al. (2019)66
2 years
Initiation: 86.5% Optimal implementation: 84.8% Persistence: 62.9%
Three measures of non-adherence (Non-initiation (not dispensed by the SFK database within 14 days), suboptimal implementation (MPR), Non-persistence (discontinuation within 294 days after first dispense))
Claims Database electronic medical records
Klang et al. (2015)67 24 weeks I:55%; C:15.2% The prescription fill method to assess adherence (the proportion of compliance during the first 24 weeks) Claims Database
LeBlanc et al. (2015)68 2 years I:67.7%; C:65.5% PDC Claims Database
Slabbert et al. (2015)69 6 years 34% MPR Claims Database
Zhang et al. (2016)70 1 year 17.8% The duration of time from initiation to discontinuation of therapy. Claims Database
Hammonds et al. (2015)71 2 years and 7 months 45% Percent adherence was calculated by dividing the actual number of pills taken by the expected number of pills taken during the study period and multiplying the total by 100 Pill Count
Pradeep et al. (2014)72 3 years I:11.1 ± 10.4; C:3.33 ± 3.79 The total number of weeks the subjects took antidepressant medication, pill counts to ensure that patients took medication as prescribed by doctor. Pill count