Research Article

Improved Medication Adherence with the Use of Extended-Release Tacrolimus in Liver Transplant Recipients: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Table 1

Baseline demographics, clinical characteristics, and medication adherence of the study participants.

TAC-ER (n = 9)TAC-IR (n = 16) value

Age, mean (SD)52 (12.5)55.6 (12.2)0.49
Ethnicity, n (%)
 Caucasian6 (67%)10 (62%)0.86
 African American2 (22%)4 (25%)
 Hispanic1 (11%)1 (6%)
 Asian0 (0%)1 (6%)
Gender, n (%)
 Male2 (22%)10 (62%)0.053
 Female7 (78%)6 (38%)
Level of education, n (%)
 High school/GED5 (56%)6 (38%)0.21
 Some college0 (0%)6 (38%)
 Bachelors3 (33%)3 (19%)
 Masters or above1 (11%)1 (6%)
Marital status, n (%)
 Single4 (44%)3 (19%)0.31
 Married5 (56%)9 (56%)
 Divorced0 (0%)3 (19%)
 Widowed0 (0%)1 (6%)
Time from LT to enrollment, median years (IQR)1.4 (0.8, 2.8)1.0 (0.6, 3.0)0.82
Time from LT to enrollment <1 yr, n (%)4 (44%)7 (47%)0.92
Baseline tacrolimus trough level, mean ng/mL (SD)7.7 (2.0)6.0 (2.2)0.096
Baseline tacrolimus dose, mean mg/day (SD)7.2 (1.8)4.9 (2.6)0.022
Mean trough level ng/mL, week 1-month 9 (IQR)6.5 (9.4)6.65 (7.5)0.28
Mean trough level ng/mL, week 1-month 9, mean (SD)7.6 (2.1)6.3 (2.0)0.14
Acute rejection, n (%)1 (17%)1 (11%)0.76
Any nonadherence at baseline3 (33%)10 (62%)0.16
BAASIS adherence at baseline
 Never taken as prescribed0 (0%)1 (6%)0.33
 Sometimes taken as prescribed3 (33%)9 (56%)
 Always taken as prescribed6 (67%)6 (38%)
BAASIS adherence at 4 weeks
 Never taken as prescribed0 (0%)0 (0%)0.22
 Sometimes taken as prescribed2 (29%)8 (57%)
 Always taken as prescribed5 (71%)6 (43%)
BAASIS adherence at 3 months
 Never taken as prescribed0 (0%)1 (8%)0.053
 Sometimes taken as prescribed2 (22%)8 (67%)
 Always taken as prescribed7 (78%)3 (25%)
BAASIS adherence at 6 months
 Never taken as prescribed0 (0%)0 (0%)0.26
 Sometimes taken as prescribed3 (38%)7 (64%)
 Always taken as prescribed5 (62%)4 (36%)
BAASIS adherence at 9 months
 Never taken as prescribed0 (0%)0 (0%)0.14
 Sometimes taken as prescribed1 (14%)7 (47%)
 Always taken as prescribed6 (86%)8 (53%)
Full-adherence throughout the study2 (22%)1 (6%)0.24
At least one-time full adherence9 (100%)10 (62%)0.035