Inhibitory control is associated with medication adherence in young HIV patients without comorbidities

Abstract

Objective

In the present study we evaluated the incremental contribution of executive cognition (EC) subprocesses to antiretroviral medication adherence.

Method

A comprehensive EC test battery assessing updating/working memory, mental flexibility, and inhibitory control, along with measures assessing non-executive cognitive functions were completed by 100 individuals with HIV. Medication adherence was determined via a visual analogue self-report scale and the Medication Adherence Questionnaire. Potential predictors, including demographic and clinical characteristics and neuropsychological performances on EC and other cognitive tasks were regressed to medication adherence. Predictive variables related to executive processes were added in the final block of the hierarchical regression model in order to assess their incremental predictive ability on medication adherence.

Results

23% of the variance in the visual analogue scale was explained by treatment complexity, memory and EC performance. A measure of inhibitory control, in particular, predicted self-reported medication adherence above and beyond demographic, clinical and other cognitive factors.

Conclusions

The contribution of EC to self-reported medication adherence in young seropositive adults was limited, but inhibitory control was associated with proper medication management above and beyond demographic, clinical and other cognitive functions.

Keywords:

• Executive processes
• flexibility
• HIV
• inhibitory control
• medication adherence
• updating

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Greek State Scholarship Foundation (I.K.Y) with a grant to the first author for doctoral research. Authors wish to thank Despina Valagouti and Theofilos Chrysanthidis for their collaboration in data collection and Simeon Metallidis for his permission for access to the Unit of Infectious Disease of Thessaloniki at AHEPA Hospital.

We also thank NIH-EXAMINER authors, who kindly granted us permission and provided us with the computerized tasks included in the present study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).